Again, the Federal high court sitting in Lagos has adjourned hearing of the suit against Oando Plc by some of its shareholders and other interested parties to April.
It’s about the third time the case would be adjourned since 2021.
Oando Plc, Nigeria’s leading indigenous energy group listed on both the Nigerian Exchange Limited and Johannesburg Stock Exchange said, ‘’ The Federal High Court, Lagos Division has further adjourned the petition in Suit No: FHC/L/CP/494/2021-Venus Construction Company Limited &13 others vs. Ocean and Oil Development Partners Limited and Oando Plc, which was filed in Court on March 25, 2021 (the “Petition”) to April 17th 2024.’’
Oando Plc made the disclosure in a notice to the NGX.
‘’The adjournment to 7th April 2024 is for the court to hear pending applications brought before it by certain shareholders seeking to be joined to the petition and challenging the court’s order dated June 7, 2022, which among other orders, directed the company to file its Scheme of Arrangement document (the “Scheme Document”) with the Securities and Exchange Commission and the NGX within 30 days.’’
Ocean and Oil Development Partners Limited and the company are the first and second respondents.
The energy company had revealed its plans to delist from the NGX in March 2023 as the company’s core investor, Ocean and Oil Development Partners Limited, proposed to acquire the shares of its minority shareholders at the rate of N7.07 per unit.
Some shareholders later kicked against the move.
The Chairman Emeritus of the Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria, Sunny Nwosu, had slammed the company, saying, “In the last 10 years, shareholders of Oando have not received any dividend from them. You are selling the assets that have made NNPCL a super regulator and a super marketer; because they are the ones distributing the fuel that is being imported with taxpayers’ money; and now, they are also a super retailer. This is not part of corporate governance, this is cheating. We have seen a lot of disrespect for shareholders, especially for people who think they are doing good investments by going to the capital market.”
Also commenting, the Coordinator of the Sage Shareholders Association, Ibadan, Kehinde Olowolafe, said while it was within Oando’s right to exit the market, it was important that regulators ensure minority shareholders were not cheated.
