Nigeria’s oil and gas sector shows a widening gap in debt sustainability across industry players, with a few companies demonstrating prudent balance sheet management, while others remain deeply burdened by high borrowings and negative equity.
The top five most indebted listed oil and gas companies—led by Oando Plc, Seplat Energy Plc —highlight contrasting financial realities, from strategic leverage to severe solvency stress.
While some firms have leveraged debt to drive expansion and maintain liquidity buffers, others face mounting repayment challenges, underscoring the importance of disciplined capital structure management in a high-interest-rate environment.
Below are the most indebted listed companies in the oil and gas industry.
- Current debt: N171.47 billion
- Non-current debt: N1.50 trillion
Seplat’s debt rose by 54.47% YoY, to N1.68 trillion in June 2025 from N1.08 trillion in June 2024.
The company maintains a moderate and well-managed leverage position within the oil and gas sector. As of June 2025, the company’s total borrowings was N1.68 trillion, supported by N641.28 billion in cash and cash equivalents, resulting in net debt of N1.03 trillion, a level consistent with funding capital-intensive exploration and production projects.
Its debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60x and debt-to-capital ratio of 0.38x show that just under 40% of its funding is sourced from borrowings, with the majority supported by shareholders’ equity. A debt ratio of 0.18x underscores its relatively low reliance on debt, while an asset-to-equity ratio of 3.38x indicates a healthy balance between equity and liabilities, typical for a capital-intensive upstream operator.
The company’s debt-to-EBITDA ratio of 1.45x suggests that Seplat could repay its borrowings in under a year and a half of operating earnings, comfortable for an exploration and production company with substantial cash flow generation. Its interest coverage ratio of 3.99x signals solid earnings capacity to service debt obligations.
Seplat’s leverage profile reflects prudent financial management, the combination of moderate gearing, healthy cash flows, and sound interest coverage positions Seplat as financially resilient and well placed to pursue growth while maintaining balance sheet stability.
