Business magnate Tony Elumelu stated that his company’s proposal to purchase an oilfield was turned down by former President Muhammadu Buhari and late chief of staff Abba Kyari, despite securing substantial funds for the transaction.
In an interview with the Financial Times, Mr. Elumelu revealed that Heir Holdings, his investment firm, had approached the Buhari administration in 2017 with a bid of approximately $2.5 billion to acquire an oilfield.
According to Mr. Elumelu, the former president and his close associate rejected the offer, emphasizing that they were unwilling to allow a privately-owned entity to take control of an oilfield deemed of significant strategic value.
Expressing his perplexity to the Financial Times, Mr. Elumelu questioned the rationale behind the refusal, particularly since the transaction involved purchasing the asset from a foreign entity.
Chairing UBA, Mr. Elumelu highlighted his firsthand experience with oil theft, a prevalent issue influencing the divestment of onshore assets by global oil companies.
After obtaining a 45% ownership stake in an oilfield three years ago, Mr. Elumelu recounted the challenges he faced due to criminal gangs pilfering his pipeline and causing disruptions in production by stealing substantial quantities of crude oil.
The frustration prompted him to tweet in 2022, “How can we be losing over 95 per cent of oil production to thieves?”
The frustration prompted him to tweet in 2022, “How can we be losing over 95 per cent of oil production to thieves?”
Mr Elumelu said, “The government should know, they should tell us” the masterminds behind the oil theft. “Our security agencies should tell us who is stealing our oil. You bring vessels to our territorial waters, and we don’t know?”
