NIPCO bags awards on acquisition of ExxonMobil

NIPCO Plc has bagged an Oil and Gas industry award for its unprecedented acquisition of ExxonMobil stake in Mobil Oil Nigeria (MON) Plc.

The award, which was in recognition of the company’s huge financial investments in the nation’s downstream petroleum industry, was the highlight of the maiden Nigeria International Petroleum Summit (NIPS) held in Abuja.

Presenting the award to NIPCO at an impressive event witnessed by key stakeholders, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Dr. Folasade Yemi-Ojo, said it was part of the Federal Government’s efforts to encourage operators, who have shown considerable interest in the growth of the industry.

The acquisition of ExxonMobil stake in MON by an indigenous company, she said, was assessed as a significant effort by an indigenous operator, hence the award to NIPCO.

The Permanent Secretary while presenting the award in the presence of the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, said the deal to acquire ExxonMobil stake in MON, with KPMG offering consultancy support, was adjudged by a team of assessors as the largest deal in the downstream sector in 2017.

According to her, KPMG was given the job to ensure extreme fairness, diligence and acceptability locally and globally.

She explained that Government had no hand in the selection process, and the final determination of eventual winners, stressing that KPMG only brought the award recipients list a few hours to the award from their Lagos corporate office.

Earlier, while presenting the list to the gathering, KPMG Associate Director, Tokunbo Osinowo, noted that the award process was very transparent, with set parameters for all categories of award, adding that there were no interference of any sort from anywhere.

According to her, KPMG in view of its pedigree in management consulting, was very fair to all categories of operators, and was mindful of international best practices in its selection processes.

She noted that after setting all parameters for the selection, none of the nominees and eventual winners had a pre-knowledge to ward off any interference that could affect the entire process.

NIPCO team, led by its Managing Director, Sanjay Teotia, and the Chief Corporate Affairs Manager, Lawal Taofeek, received the award on behalf of the company.

Speaking after the award, Teotia described the award as a welcome development, saying the company’s continuous interest in the downstream sector is an affirmation of its belief in the Nigerian economy.