The management and Board of Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc have quickly exonerated itself from a recent court judgement involving its Chairman, Mr A. B.C Orjiako.
A statement signed by the company’s Secretary and issued late Wednesday (October 17th) to the Nigerian Stock Exchange said Seplat’s attention had been drawn to recent media publications regarding the court judgement. The statement went further to stress that the oil company is not a party to the court case and would, therefore, like to dissociate itself.
Why is Seplat distancing itself?
The court judgement, though involving Seplat’s Chairman of Board, does not have anything to do with Seplat itself. Instead, two other separate companies are involved namely- Allene Limited and Shebah Exploration & Production Company Limited. Consequently, Seplat thought it wise to set the records straight in order to avoid any form of confusion.
Moreover, Seplat Petroleum Development Plc is required by Rule 17.10 of the NSE’s RuleBook to make this announcement in the event of this kind of situation.
“SEPLAT is not a party to the litigation. The Company will monitor the progress of this suit and issue further communication on the matter as appropriate. This announcement is being made by the Company in accordance with Rule 17.10, Rulebook of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, 2015 (Issuers Rule).” -Seplat
Here’s the Backstory
Recall that a Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos recently ordered Dr Orjiako and the other defendants mentioned above to pay three banks – Diamond Bank Plc, African Export-Import Bank, and Skye Bank Plc – the sum of $114 million.
This was was an enforcement of judgement earlier delivered by the High Court of Justice Queen’s Bench Division and upheld by the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom.
The $114 million is the outstanding and accrued interest of a credit facility granted to the defendants in 2011.
Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc is a leading oil company in the upstream sector. The company is listed on both the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and London Stock Exchange (LSE). The company’s stock on the NSE is currently trading at N615.
