Niger Delta Exploration and Production plc (NDEP) held its 25th annual general meeting (AGM) recently, where shareholders unanimously approved a dividend of N17 per share, the company’s highest in its 13th year of consistent dividend payment.
The AGM was held virtually June 17 due to the impact of COVID-19 pandemic in line with current Health and Safety protocols and in accordance with the guidelines provided by the Nigerian Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).
Speaking at the event, NDEP’s chairman of the Board, Ladi Jadesinmi, reviewed the outstanding and remarkable previous 10 years journey of the company, and predicted a future next 10 years of further significant achievements with rewards for shareholders.
The interim CEO, Layi Fatona, reassured shareholders of the strong positioning of the company, saying, “NDEP is on a solid growth track and is well-positioned to weather the current challenges of the operating environment,” including a low oil price regime, reduced OPEC production quotas and the uncertainties surrounding COVID-19 pandemic.
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Fatona also assured shareholders that the well-being of staff and the company’s stakeholders was of paramount importance to NDEP, adding that the company had made considerable investments towards ensuring the Health and Safety of its Human Capital following the outbreak of COVID-19.
Among the highlights of the company’s financial performances was its Top line Revenue growth of 16 percent, from N39 billion to N46 billion, the highest in the past decade due to its strong asset quality, and operational processes.
NDEP also recorded a sustained robust share of profit of N9 billion from its associate, ND Western Limited, while its crude oil revenue rose to N38.3 billion from N29.4 billion in 2018, a year-on-year improvement of 24 percent, as a result of an increase in production despite the market’s price volatility.
The company also had a lot of positives in its operational highlights for the 2019 financial year, recording 10MM man-hours with no Loss Time Injury (LTI), despite a significant increase in activity levels, while average daily production at its Ogbele Field increased to a record 7,500bbls/d.
Other production highlights include a total gas production of 13.330BScf with a minimal technical flare of 193.92MM Scf (1.45% of production) from its subsidiary, ND Gas, while the company also reported the successful completion of the first of second phases of its Refinery Expansion Project, marked by the production of refined petroleum products just after midnight of December 31, 2019. . The 2nd Phase (Train-3) is at the final stages of mechanical completion.
The Ogbele Refinery is the first fully-fledged Modular Refinery in sub-Saharan Africa.
“From our modest beginnings and small Nigerian shareholder base, we have grown into a fully integrated energy company, with Sub-Saharan Africa exposure and over 1600 shareholders. Successfully holding our 25th AGM, and celebrating our 13th year of consistent dividend payments show just how far we have come, the solid fundamentals and prudent resources management of NDEP,” Fatona remarked at the closing of the AGM.
NDEP is a foremost Independent integrated energy company. Through its wholly-owned operating companies, Niger Delta Petroleum Resources (NDPR), ND Gas and ND Refineries Limited – it owns a range of assets including its flagship asset, the Ogbele Oil and Gas Field with a fully self- managed Flow Station, the soon-to-be commissioned Refinery with 11,000 bbl/d processing capacity, a 100MM Scf/d gas processing plant, and an Operations and management (O&M) venture in South Sudan.
