Tony Elumelu’s Seplat stake tops $600 million weeks after $496 million purchase

On the final day of 2025, Tony Elumelu closed the year with a deal that immediately reshaped Nigeria’s listed energy sector and quietly underscored the scale of capital now being deployed by local investors. Through Heirs Energies, the Nigerian businessman acquired a 20.07 percent stake in Seplat Energy Plc for $496 million, becoming the largest shareholder in the country’s biggest listed energy producer. Weeks later, the stake is valued at more than $600 million.

The transaction, completed on Dec. 31, 2025, involved the purchase of 120.4 million Seplat shares previously held by French oil and gas producer Maurel & Prom. A binding agreement signed after market close on Dec. 30 valued the shares at £3.05 each, placing the deal at $496 million. At $494.5 million to $496 million, depending on currency conversion, it stands as one of the largest locally driven acquisitions in Africa’s oil and gas industry in recent years.

Seplat rally lifts Elumelu stake

Since the deal was announced, Seplat’s shares have drawn consistent buying on both the London and Nigerian exchanges, fueled by investor expectations of full-year results surpassing forecasts and recent operational milestones indicating stronger cash flow.

On the London bourse, Seplat shares have risen 22 percent since Dec. 31, climbing from £3.05 to £3.67 at the close of trading on Monday, Feb. 9. That move lifted the value of Elumelu’s stake from £367.2 million ($496 million) to £441.9 million ($603.9 million), an increase of £74.65 million, or about $109.4 million, in a matter of weeks.

The rally has coincided with operational progress at Seplat. The company recently began delivering gas from its Assa North-Ohaji South project after securing regulatory approvals and completing an 11-kilometer export pipeline, a development that expands domestic gas supply at a time when Nigeria is seeking to strengthen power generation and industrial output.

Elumelu builds wealth, boardroom power

The jump in Seplat’s share price has added to a broader run of gains across Elumelu’s listed interests. His 30.83 percent stake in Transcorp Group has risen by $19.1 million this year, from $98 million on Jan. 1 to $117.16 million. His 16.38 percent holding in United Bank for Africa has increased by $21.6 million, from $149.7 million to $171.3 million, reflecting share price gains and the recent strengthening of the naira against the dollar amid global trade policy concerns, expectations of U.S. Federal Reserve rate cuts, and rising political instability.

Even as his empire expands, Elumelu continues to juggle multiple roles as chairman of UBA, Transcorp Group, Heirs Holdings and the Tony Elumelu Foundation. His influence at Seplat is also set to deepen. Following the acquisition, he joined the board of Seplat Energy as a non-executive director after the resignation of Olivier Cleret de Langavant, a Maurel & Prom nominee who had served since 2020. This positions Elumelu for a future chairmanship of Nigeria’s leading indigenous energy producer, marking another chapter in a career defined by patient capital, boardroom presence and long-term bets on African businesses.