Major Oil Marketers Hail NNPCL’s Acquisition of Top Downstream Company, OVH Energy Marketing

Peter Uzoho

The Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), an umbrella body of the largest downstream oil and gas companies in the country, has congratulated the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) on the successful acquisition of OVH Energy Marketing (OVHEM) Limited, a major downstream operator.

MOMAN in a statement issued yesterday by its Chairman and Managing Director of Ardova Plc, Mr. Olumide Adeosun, welcomed and encouraged the ongoing market consolidation geared towards bringing stability, cost and logistics optimisation in the downstream sector.
OVH is the owner and operator of the Oando- branded retail service stations across the country, and the company and NNPCL are member companies of MOMAN.

The Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of NNPCL, Mallam Mele Kyari and the Chief Executive Executive Officer of OVH Energy Marketing Limited, Mr. Huub Stokman, had announced the acquisition transaction last weekend at an event held in Abuja.

However, commenting on the development, Adeosun said, “We send hearty congratulations to NNPC Retail Limited and OVH Energy Marketing Limited on the successful acquisition of OVH Energy Marketing Limited by NNPC Limited.

“Both companies are active MOMAN members who are committed to our core values of health, safety, the protection of the environment, quality, customer service, innovation, technology and compliance with international corporate governance codes.
“MOMAN welcomes and encourages the ongoing market consolidation which will bring stability, cost and logistics optimisation, enhanced competition and best practice sharing as we progress to a deregulated market.”

Kyari had said OVH Energy’s Oando- branded retail service stations would be rebranded into the NNPCL’s brand and merged with NNPC Retail Limited with full integration scheduled to take place by the end of 2023.
Both Kyari and Stokman were, however, silent on the financial implication of the deal and what would be the fate of OVH Energy Marketing’s employees when the formal takeover takes place by 2023.

The acquisition tagged by NNPCL as ‘Acquisition for Growth’, was expected to see the national oil company become the owner of entire assets of OVH Energy Marketing, licensee of the Oando retail brand and ASPM Limited, custodians of the Lagos Midstream Jetty, also known as West Africa’s first privately owned midstream jetty.

OVH Energy boasts of distributing over one billion litres of refined petroleum products annually while ASPM Limited is focused on strengthening Nigeria’s downstream value chain through the Lagos jetty.

In the short term, the acquisition would see the NNPCL receive a jetty (ASPM) with 240,000 metric tonnes monthly capacity, eight Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) plants, three lubes blending plants, three aviation depots and 12 warehouses.

The deal would also bring over 380 additional filling stations under NNPCL retail brand in Nigeria and Togo, on its journey to attaining 1,500 stations, making it the largest petroleum product retail network in Africa.
OVH’s expertise spans the provision of jetty services and the marketing and distribution of refined petroleum products for retail, commercial and industrial purposes.

The NNPCL GCEO had explained that the strategic move was aimed to create the leading downstream energy company in Nigeria and West Africa, driven by operational efficiency, best-in-class management, and physical infrastructure while offering premium petroleum products and related services to customers, in line with global standards.

Through this acquisition, he said the NNPC Retail Limited would build on the existing success of OVH Energy and operate model service outlets leveraging OVH’s extensive asset base and commercial capabilities.

Kyari further stated that the NNPCL was bringing to the table, its 45 years of experience and strong capability to bear on the management of the facilities.He maintained that securing the country against energy poverty would mean access to petroleum products in addition to managing the energy transition, which he said has become a reality.