Italian oil major Eni has received formal consent from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) for the sale of 100 per cent of its shares of Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC) to Oando PLC for an undisclosed amount.

Oando PLC, in a statement by its secretary, Ayotola Jagun, on Thursday, said following Eni’s receipt of consent, both parties can proceed with the completion of the transaction.

Commenting, Wale Tinubu, group chief executive of Oando plc, said “We are delighted that Eni has received the government’s approval to proceed with the completion of this strategic transaction.

“We extend our gratitude to the Honourable Minister of Petroleum Resources and the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) for their concerted efforts in ensuring the execution of the grant of consent under the novel and robust divestment framework established by the recently enacted Petroleum Industry Act.”

Last September, Eni signed a Sales & Purchase Agreement (SPA) with Oando to sell its local onshore unit NAOC in OML 60 – 63, a joint venture in which NNPC Exploration and Production Limited, a subsidiary of state-owned NNPC Limited (NNPC Ltd), holds a 60 per cent stake.

NAOC’s participating interest in Shell Production Development Company Joint Venture (operator Shell 30 per cent, TotalEnergies 10 per cent, NAOC 5 per cent, NNPC 55 per cent) is not part of the deal and so will be retained in Eni’s portfolio, Oando said at the time.

In July, the NUPRC announced that Oando had completed the acquisition of 100 per cent shares of Eni in its subsidiary, NAOC.