TotalEnergies has finalized an agreement to sell its 10% interest in the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) joint venture (JV) licences to Chappal Energies for $860 million (€786.8 million). The SPDC JV, an unincorporated partnership, consists of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (55%), Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (30% and operator), TotalEnergies EP Nigeria (10%), and NAOC (5%). Together, these entities hold 18 licences in the Niger Delta region.
According to the sale and purchase agreement (SPA), TotalEnergies EP Nigeria will transfer its 10% participating interest in 15 licences to Chappal Energies. These licences represented about 14,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day of TotalEnergies’ share in 2023. Additionally, TotalEnergies will transfer its 10% stake in the OML 23, OML 28, and OML 77 SPDC JV licences, which are primarily gas-producing, to Chappal Energies.
However, TotalEnergies will retain full economic interest in these three key licences, which contribute 40% of the gas supply to Nigeria LNG. The completion of this transaction is contingent upon meeting customary conditions, including obtaining necessary regulatory approvals.
This divestment comes after TotalEnergies and its partner, NNPCL, recently made a Final Investment Decision (FID) on the Ubeta gas field in Nigeria. The Ubeta gas condensate field, located in the OML 58 onshore licence, is set to be developed with a new six-well cluster.
Nicolas Terraz, President of Exploration & Production at TotalEnergies, stated: “TotalEnergies continues to actively manage its portfolio in Nigeria, in line with its strategy to focus on its oil offshore and gas assets. After the launch of the Ubeta gas development on OML 58 licence last month, this divestment of our interest in SPDC JV licences allows us to focus our onshore Nigeria presence solely on the integrated gas value chain and is designed to ensure the continuity of feed gas supply to Nigeria LNG in the future.”
