Seplat Energy Plc attributes its success and exponential growth in the Nigerian oil and gas sector to the highly efficient, resilient and resourceful workforce, which it describes as the company’s ‘assets’
By Edu Abade
Leading Nigerian independent energy company, Seplat Energy Plc, has recorded unprecedented growth since it was founded by acquiring divested assets, unlocking value from them, improving efficiency and safety performance of the assets, while driving its entire growth process with a world-class and resilient people or workforce.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Seplat Energy Plc, Roger Brown, who also maintained that the company’s highly proficient human capital and employees remain its asset integrity, noted that the workforce was behind the reliability responsible for driving sustainable growth, adding that its acquisition strategy was underpinned by high safety standards and operational excellence.
Brown, who spoke during a Fireside Chat titled: Assets Acquisition Success Strategies: Seplat Energy, stated this at the 2025 Africa Energy Week (AEW) Conference & Exhibition in Cape Town, South Africa, adding that the company has successfully integrated major acquisitions in the last decade, each time improving efficiency and safety performance, while at the same time reducing routine emissions.
Speaking on its recent acquisition of Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited (MPNU) assets, he said the goal had been to move steadily and quickly to re-engage wells and facilities-resulting in the delivery of immediate results; investing early in integrity and reliability-thus reducing downtime, while setting a foundation for future growth; and integrating not is not just systems, but people.
“We found strong cultural alignment with our new colleagues, and that has been crucial to our seamless performance. We have welcomed their expertise and insights and the entire Group is benefiting from them. And by combining Seplat’s onshore experience with decades of offshore know-how from new colleagues, the company has built a stronger operation from day one, which is already delivering higher cash flow.
“The recent reserves upgrade shows we have acquired a high-quality asset with significant production potential in both oil and gas, and much of this is within easy reach, close to export infrastructure that we control. We are confident we can increase production and that aligns with the Government’s target to increase liquids production to 3.0 MMbbl and to increase gas production for both domestic energy and export markets,” Brown said.
Speaking on the company’s strong operator mindset, Brown said Seplat Energy focuses on acquiring assets where its operating capability could unlock hidden value-especially mature fields that benefit from a more agile, entrepreneurial operator.
“We’ve already proven we can acquire assets onshore and bring them up to high levels of production, whilst keeping tight control of costs, and this has helped us build up a strong balance sheet, invest in our future and return a healthy dividend stream to investors,” he stressed.
On the company’s clear appetite for success, the Seplat Energy CEO said the focus had always been on safety and operational excellence, which are targeted at maximising production and cash flows that strengthen the business
“We’re a low-cost operator, meaning we can be profitable at good oil prices and we’ve proven we can survive periods of low prices and prolonged lock-ins. We look after our staff, all of whom are very highly qualified, mostly Nigerian, and ensure they are fully aligned with our success, which in turn will bring success for Nigeria’s energy system. We’ve got a deep bench and a strong succession pipeline,” he explained.
In the same vein, Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Seplat Energy Plc, Eleanor Adaralegbe, who spoke during a panel discussion titled: Financing Upstream Projects for Domestic Energy Security, said since inception, the company has continued to blaze the trail with a highly successful capital raising history; of which the company had raised over $4 Billion in debt to develop and grow operations whilst continuing to maintain a low leverage threshold of below 1.5x through the cycle.
On the various financing options the company had leveraged since inception, Adaralegbe identified the Initial Public Offer (IPO), Revolving Credit Facility (RCF), Bonds, Advance Payment Facility, as well as other financings like taking over the $110 Million RBL, which is currently being refinanced (on Eland acquisition of 2019 and putting in place a $320 Million project financing for ANOH, Seplat’s 50/50 Joint Venture (JV) with the Nigerian Gas Infrastructure Company (a 100 percent wholly owned subsidiary of NNPC).
Speaking on financing challenges and what Seplat Energy had done to overcome them, she said: “Corporate organizations are always looking to access low-cost financing for development and growth, more so, Nigerian energy companies, as Nigerian banks have a high USD cost of borrowing. As such, we knew that we had to become a first mover and shape our credit profile to appeal to a wider group of banks and investors. We are the first and only Nigerian oil and gas company listed on both the Nigerian and London exchanges.”
On the company’s key credit highlights, the Seplat Energy CFO listed Balanced Assets with Substantial Production; Portfolio Diversification Through Gas Business; Uniquely Positioned to Capture Future Growth; Strong Financials and Well-Tested Risk Management; Well managed liquidity; Focus on tax efficiencies; Experienced Management and Strong Governance and Leading Indigenous and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)-Focused Operator.
“Seplat Energy has repeatedly been able to refinance to extend maturities and bring down our cost of debt while keeping leverage moderate. We have been able to do this because we are focused on things that lenders are focused on-asset diversification, steady production, strong financials, low leverage, focus on tax efficiencies, strong leadership,” Adaralegbe explained.
On the importance of financing, she said Nigeria’s energy security depended heavily on upstream oil and gas, which fuels both domestic consumption and foreign exchange earnings; declining investment in upstream projects due to global energy transition pressures and perceived risks; and rising domestic demand for gas and power requires urgent expansion of upstream activity, particularly gas exploration and production.
“Until utility-scale renewable energy sources, storage and transmission are materially larger, Nigeria’s ability to keep lights on, vehicles moving, industries running and households cooking cleanly is fundamentally constrained by upstream oil and gas development, output and associated midstream delivery-that is upstream development is a direct lever on national energy security,” she advised.
Adaralegbe pointed out that a stable and predictable fiscal framework remain the single most powerful enabler of upstream financing of which consistent application of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 provisions, timely JV cash-call settlements and clarity on commodity pricing policies are essential to de-risk projects and crowd in long-term capital.
