The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) will be ready to list its shares on the stock exchange by the middle of next year, Mele Kyari, its group chief executive officer, has said.
Kyari said this in Abuja on Tuesday at the unveiling of the NNPC as a commercial entity.
He said the company would no longer bear the burden of petrol subsidy, but would continue to support the federal government in the supply of petroleum products.
When asked how the NNPC would handle petrol subsidy as an independent commercial entity, Kyari said, “Subsidy is not NNPC’s burden; it’s a decision of the state. Whichever policy the state decides, the NNPC is there to provide the products to the state at commercial value and it is also our duty to deliver to the customer at the price that the state wants.
“So, it’s no longer an NNPC issue. NNPC will have no issue with this. NNPC will be happy to supply because we now see the state as our customer.”
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He said the NNPC would be ready for Initial Public Offer (IPO) by the middle of next year to expand its capital base.
Kyari said: “We are convinced that by the middle of next year, this company will be IPO-ready, which means that you have the system, processes, and a company that is accountable to its stakeholders and shareholders.
“Today, government has transferred assets to NNPC; so we have ample assets that nobody has in this country and not even in Africa has. Getting an IPO means that people will see this company as a company that will not lose money, a company that will deliver value and deliver energy; so they will put their money into it.”
According to him, as a commercial entity, the company will no longer contribute to the Federation Account, but will pay taxes and royalties to government and dividend to shareholders.
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President Muhammadu Buhari said the new status of NNPC would enable it to deliver value to 200 million shareholders.
Buhari said the new company would guarantee energy security in the country.
According to him, NNPC will sustainably deliver value to its over 200 million shareholders and the global energy community; operate without relying on government funding and be free from institutional regulations such as the Treasury Single Account.
He assured stakeholders in the industry that Africa’s largest national oil company (NOC) would adhere to its fundamental corporate values of integrity, excellence and sustainability while operating as a commercial, independent and viable NOC at par with its peers around the world.
Timipre Sylva, minister of state for petroleum resources, said a new dawn was ushered into Nigeria’s oil and gas industry when the Petroleum Industry Bill was signed into law on August 16, 2021.
He said: “It was a landmark achievement and victory for all Nigerians after about two decades of dashed hopes.
“One of the magnanimous provisions of the PIA, which has been unveiled at this important occasion, is the transition of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation into a fully commercial entity, which will be a limited liability company incorporated under the Companies and Allied Matters Act to be known as NNPC Limited.”
