By Akanimo Sampson
Shoprite’s local business in Nigeria will be taken over by a Nigerian property company, Persianas, once the authorities okay the deal.
Citing plural sources, Reuters, an international news agency, reported on Wednesday that Persianas is buying Shoprite’s Nigerian business after the South African retailer decided to retreat from other African markets.
This is coming as Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) said BUA, a construction giant, is among 28 private investors with active refining licences.
It will operate as BUA Refinery & Petrochemicals Limited.
Thirty-two refinery project licences issued to private investors in the country had become invalid in the past three years as they were missing on the DPR’s updated list of valid licences as of March 2021.
In a new list published on its website on Tuesday, DPR said 28 licences were active while 29 were inactive.
Refineries with active Licence to establish are BUA Refinery & Petrochemicals, Ogini Refinery Limited, Excel Exploration & Production, Lowrie Refinery Limited, NPDC/ND WESTERN OML 34 JV, Ogini Refinery, Eghudu Refinery and Kingdom Global Trading Petroleum & Gas Nig.
The 20 refineries with active Approval to Construct/Relocate include Dangote Oil Refinery Company, OPAC Refineries, Waltersmith Refining & Petrochemical Company, Niger Delta Petroleum Resources, Edo Petrochemical Refinery, Etopo Energy Plc, Resource Petroleum & Petrochemicals International Incorporated, Duport Midstream and Conodit Refinery Nigeria.
Others are Gasoline Associates International, Frao Oil Nigeria, Alexis Refinery, Allegiance Energy and Power, Atlantic International Refineries and Petrochemical, Amakpe International Refinery Inc, Gazingstock Petroleum Company, Azikel Petroleum, and Clairgold Oil & Gas Engineering.
Former Interior Minister, Emmanuel Iheanacho, says investors that have been granted licences to build refineries in the country need sufficient time to do so.
Iheanacho, who is the Chairman of Eko Petrochem and Refining Company said it was wrong to assume that a refinery could be built in two years in the country.
He told The Guardian on Tuesday that his company was still pushing ahead with its plan to build a 20,000-barrels-per-day modular refinery in Lagos.
In 2017, Eko Petrochem and Refining announced the signing of a grant of $797,343 by the United States Trade and Development Agency for the project.
Iheanacho said, “have you ever seen anybody who has built a refinery in two years? The assumption that people can build a refinery in two years is wrong. If we give you a licence, we must allow sufficient time for you.
“What is in it if you give somebody a licence and you then put a time frame? What you should do is to give a licence, if the investor succeeds, we clap. If not, we say, “Oh, next time.” But to say that we have given you a licence, and then later say, “We have taken it back.” What are you taking it back for? There is no need to cancel anybody’s licence.”
The ex-minister said his company had been on its refinery project for four years, adding, “At no time have we stopped. We have continued; we have done the front-end engineering. We have done detailed engineering.
“The American government has come to our aid and given us money. We have hired the very best professionals to find funds for us. So, we are really at a point when we are going to funding.”
Iheanacho said the company would revalidate its licence. “We have been discussing it. That is a non-issue. So, we are doing everything necessary,” he added.
DPR said on Tuesday that companies whose refinery project licences had become inactive could reapply for revalidation.
The agency, in a statement by its Head of Public Affairs, Paul Osu, said, “we wish to clarify that DPR did not revoke any refinery licence. Refinery licence, like our other regulatory instruments have validity periods for investors to attain certainly milestones.
“This implies that after the validity period for the particular milestone, the licence becomes inactive until the company reapplies for revalidation to migrate to another milestone. This does not in any way translate to revocation of the licence of the company.”
It said it will continue to provide support to investors in the oil and gas industry in Nigeria using its regulatory instruments of licences, permits and approvals to stimulate the economy and align with the government’s job creation initiatives.
However, with more than 2,300 stores across Africa, Shoprite is awaiting regulatory approval on the sale of its Nigerian supermarket operation, though no further details about the deal has been disclosed.
The company in August 2020 announced that it will be exiting the Nigerian market after over 15 years.
Shoprite said that its business in Nigeria operated under Retail Supermarkets Nigeria Limited “may be classified as a discontinued operation.”
The company said it has been approached by potential investors willing to take over its Nigerian operations. It said it is considering an outright sale or parting with a majority stake in its Nigerian subsidiary.
“Following approaches from various potential investors, and in line with our re-evaluation of the Group’s operating model in Nigeria, the Board has decided to initiate a formal process to consider the potential sale of all, or a majority stake, in Retail Supermarkets Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of Shoprite International Limited”, Shoprite said.
“As such, Retail Supermarkets Nigeria Limited may be classified as a discontinued operation when Shoprite reports its results for the year. Any further updates will be provided to the market at the appropriate time.”
Shoprite at the time denied it was exiting Nigeria, noting that no one “leaves over $30 billion investment and close shop”.
While the company is yet to give further details of its exit plans from the Nigerian market, the the announcement has led to a series of heat between Shoprite and its employees.
Shoprite staff have shut down major outlets at different times, with the workers protesting what they described as unfavourable working conditions and uncertainty of their employment status amidst the potential takeover by a new owner.
Fears of layoff and a potential return to the street forced the staff, some of which are casual workers, to demand payoff for their years of service.
“We are here to fight for our rights – our payoffs and compensation,” a male Shoprite staff told The Guardian in March 2021.
“We say no to modern-slavery,” says one of the notices posted on the locked doors of the store at the Festival Mall.
A protesting staff at Ikeja referred to the planned takeover of the company by new investors as part of the reason for the protest.
He said the protesters are not “aware of their (new investors) plans for us” after some of they have worked for the company for close to 10 to 15 years.
One of the staff insisted that they all deserved a payoff “after some staff here has worked for 10 and 15 years (with) no promotion” with little or no increment in salaries during their years of working with the company.
Another staff said, “we are scared of our new investor because we don’t know their plans. They could come in with their staff.”
