Nigerian oil and gas group Seplat (SEPL) has raised $500m (£301m) by selling 26 per cent of its shares in a combined market debut in Lagos and London. At 210p a share, the offer price came in at the lower end of the indicative range of between 195 and 255p.
The size of the fundraising nevertheless demonstrates the continuing strong interest from UK investors in prospective energy assets across Africa, and particularly Nigeria, where a number of major acquisitions and discoveries have been made recently.
"Despite a challenging market for oil and gas stocks, the response has been excellent and demonstrates strong demand in both London and at home," Seplat chairman Bryant Orjiako said in a statement. The company plans to use the offer proceeds to acquire and develop new oil assets, as well as pay off a shareholder loan of $48m. Shares in the company began trading on a conditional basis on Wednesday 9 April, ahead of a full listing on Monday, 14 April.
Aim-listed Tower Resources (TRP) separately announced a £19.3m placing to fund a land grab in South Africa, Zambia, and Kenya. It, too, had trouble getting the fundraising away at an elevated price. The company, which has been trying for some time to find oil offshore Namibia and the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic, is raising the money at 3.5p a share – a 25 per cent discount to the closing price prior to the announcement.
