Adewale Sanyaolu
After several months of documentation processes, Chairman of Forte Oil, Mr. Femi Otedola, yesterday said the sale of Forte oil has been completed. The sale is coming more than three years after the firm sold 17 per cent of its equity to a Swiss oil trading firm.
In a message on his twitter handle, the Forte Oil boss said the process had been completed and he is now prepared to focus on his investment in the power sector.
Last year, Otedola, who was chairman of the oil firm, had announced plans to sell off his 75 percent stake in the company to “maximise opportunities in refining”.
“A few years ago, my team and I embarked on an arduous task of transforming a moribund petroleum marketing business, African Petroleum Plc (formerly British Petroleum) into Forte Oil Plc; a leading integrated solutions provider with solid footprints in downstream petroleum marketing, upstream services and power generation and one in which we built intrinsic value to the benefits of our shareholders
In line with my principle of business focus, we have divested from our marketing and upstream businesses and shall from now on focus and consolidate on the gains of our power generation business, Geregu Power Plc. We wish our successors the very best and urge them to build on our legacies which have been established since 1964.” He posted.
Forte Oil had in December 2018, announced the divestment by its majority shareholder in a notice signed by its General Counsel, Mr Akinleye Olagbende.
The notice read in part, “Forte Oil Plc hereby notifies the Nigerian Stock Exchange, Securities and Exchange Commission, shareholders and the investing community that its majority shareholder, Mr Femi Otedola, has reached an agreement with the Prudent Energy team, investing through Ignite Investments and Commodities Limited, to divest of his full 75 per cent direct and indirect shareholding in the company’s downstream business