Seplat Petroleum Development Company plc has clarified its dividend payment policy to Nigerian shareholders in the wake of news reports that the company is insisting on paying its Nigerian shareholders in dollars.
The company, which is listed on the London and Nigerian stock exchanges, made the clarification via a press statement signed by its general counsel, Mirian Kene Kachikwu. In the statement, Kachikwu described the seeming confusion as a “simple misunderstanding.”
According to Kachikwu, “we are constrained to publicly clarify our dividend payment policy and set the records straight against the backdrop of recent media reports, obviously on the ground of a simple misunderstanding. Seplat has a diverse shareholder base and we pay dividends to our diverse shareholders in compliance with applicable Nigerian laws and regulations. For the avoidance of doubt, our final dividend for the full year 2014, following shareholder approval, on June 2, 2015, will be paid in naira, as applicable, to our Nigerian shareholders on June 10, 2015.”
Kachikwu pointed out that the misunderstanding had arisen from an act of magnanimity on the part of Seplat which was applauded by shareholders, but which is now being criticised.
“The slight confusion must have arisen when we paid our interim dividend in November 2014. We had given relevant ‘Nigerian’ shareholders who have domiciliary accounts the option of receiving their dividends in US dollars. Obviously, this act of magnanimity, which was applauded by a number of shareholders, also drew sharp criticism from others.”
Explaining further, she said the fact of the company being listed on the two bourses means that its annual report be denominated in both naira and dollars. “As a company listed on two exchanges in Lagos and London, we prepare our annual accounts in two currencies, the Nigerian naira and the US dollar.
“Our Nigerian accounts for the full year 2014, submitted to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and published in some national dailies two weeks ago, was denominated in the Nigerian naira. These accounts are exactly the same as the US dollar denominated version, submitted to the London Stock Exchange (LSE), having used the ruling exchange rate of the naira/dollar to convert the accounts to naira.”
Seplat Petroleum Development Company plc, the operator of the NPDC/SEPLAT Joint Venture, is a publicly quoted Nigerian Exploration and Production independent company. The company listed simultaneously on the Nigerian and London stock exchanges in April 2014. With an average gross gas production of 99 million standard cubic feet per day in 2013, Seplat projects to triple its gas production by end 2016 through massive investments in processing and delivery infrastructure. It is also targeting gross operated oil production of 85Mbopd from its existing assets by the end of 2016.
