With a new milestone of leading Oando Plc to hit a $4 billion valuation and the energy firm becoming the first indigenous International Oil Company (IOC) in Nigeria, Wale Tinubu, the Chief Executive Officer of the company, now has bragging rights as one of Nigeria’s foremost entrepreneurs.
of Nigeria’s most innovative thinkers, the leadership qualities of Wale Tinubu have been described in very many superlative terms. Truly impressive, as the Group Chief Executive of Oando Plc, Wale Tinubu has demonstrated exceptional vision, strategic thinking, and business acumen in his transformation of the Oando brand.
Indeed, the billionaire entrepreneur has now changed the company from a petroleum marketing company to an integrated energy group, with a successful transition from the downstream through the midstream, and now the inevitable dominance of the upstream sector.
Wale Tinubu co-founded Ocean and Oil Group in 1994, which later became Oando Plc, and has since led the company to become one of Africa’s leading indigenous energy solutions providers.
An innovative problem-solver, Tinubu pioneered the development of Nigeria’s foremost natural gas distribution network and captive power solutions through Axxela Limited.
A man with a heart of gold, through the Oando Foundation, Wale Tinubu has supported education initiatives, improving learning environments in primary schools across Nigeria. He has navigated complex regulatory environments and economic challenges, demonstrating his ability to adapt and thrive in uncertain situations. He has received numerous awards, including Private Sector Icon of the Year (2023), African Business Leader of the Year (2011), and Entrepreneur of the Year (2015).
As a Young Global Leader (2007) Wale Tinubu was recognised by the World Economic Forum (WEF), especially for bringing a global perspective to Nigeria’s energy sector. So, his inroads into the upstream did not come as a surprise.
Overall, Wale Tinubu’s leadership qualities have enabled him to build a successful and sustainable business, while also contributing to Nigeria’s economic growth and development.
His leadership has been instrumental in driving success at Oando. He has ensured the strategic expansion of the Oando brand, expanded Oando’s operations, and led the acquisition of ConocoPhillips Nigerian assets and recently NAOC.
He has had collaborations with international companies, such as ENI and Vitol, developed Nigeria’s foremost natural gas distribution network, pioneered captive power solutions for industrial customers and established Oando Clean Energy Limited to focus on solar and wind energy.
In terms of cost optimisation, Wale Tinubu pioneered and implemented cost-reduction strategies to enhance profitability, enhanced process automation and led the company to invest heavily in technology to streamline operations and improve efficiency.
As for talent development, the chief executive of Oando Plc has fostered a culture of innovation and employee growth, diversified revenue streams, such that the crash of one economy does not mean the end of Oando.
At Oando, Wale Tinubu’s strategic hedging has ensured the excellent management of price volatility through hedging mechanisms and in terms of compliance has ensured regulatory adherence and maintained high governance standards.
His visionary leadership and long-term perspective on business have seen him focus on sustainable growth and development and has navigated complex regulatory environments and economic challenges.
Under his astute leadership, Oando saw increased revenue from N134 billion in 2010 to N659 billion in 2020, long before his uncle became Nigeria’s President, thereby improving profitability through cost optimisation and strategic investments. With investor confidence still very high, Oando under Wale Tinubu has attracted international investors, such as the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
With Wale Tinubu leading the charge at Oando, today, the company is Nigeria’s leading indigenous energy company, a major player in Africa’s energy sector and a symbol of Nigerian business resilience and success.
Wale Tinubu’s vision, strategic thinking, and leadership have been instrumental in driving Oando’s success and positioning the company for future growth. His career is marked by several high points that showcase his exceptional leadership and entrepreneurial skills.
Tinubu began his career as an attorney in 1990, specialising in corporate and petroleum law assignments. He holds a Master of Laws degree from the London School of Economics and also attended the University of Liverpool for his law degree. He has received numerous awards, including: “Private Sector Icon of the Year” award by Vanguard (2023); African Business Leader of the Year by Africa Investor (2011) and “Entrepreneur of the Year” West Africa by Ernst & Young (2015).He’s also been recognised as one of the Top Ten CEOs in the world by ASKMEN and was conferred with the honour of Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) in 2022 by the Muhammadu Buhari administration. Overall, Wale Tinubu’s career is a testament to his dedication, innovative spirit, and leadership excellence in the energy industry. Widely regarded as a visionary leader and a trailblazer in the African energy industry, he’s been described as having “prodigious traits” that have enabled him to build Oando Plc into one of Africa’s leading indigenous energy solutions providers.
People close to him praise his ability to navigate complex business environments and his relentless pursuit of excellence, which have driven Oando’s success even in the face of adversity.
Under his leadership, Oando broke impressive records, showcasing his understanding of the volatile oil and gas industry. Those who know him describe Tinubu as a resilient and adaptable leader, able to thrive in uncertain situations. His commitment to innovation and excellence has inspired a culture of innovation within Oando. His achievements and leadership abilities speak for themselves, solidifying his position as a respected figure in the African business community.
“When this young man started, nobody thought himself and his young co-travellers would get this far. But we can see now what he has built in the last few years.
“They are marking 30 years of being in the industry and for someone to say that these strides are because of his relationship with the president who is less than two years in government, having taken the reins of power on May 29, 2023, doesn’t just make sense. “Look at how far these young men have come. These are guys who despite the odds, despite everything stacked against them, beat the odds. And at some point in their history, people thought they had lost it. Because they borrowed to grow this business, at a point, they were owing huge debts here and there. “But they have overcome the whole thing. They have gone past that phase now. And they are now venturing and daring to acquire big signature transactions and all of that. This is a man who is daring. This is a man whose resilience is second to none. This is a man who is as focused as the eagle.
“For anybody to want to detract from all that hard work and attempt to water down all the work that he has put in in the last 30 years is not just baseless but calculated attempt to run him down,” a person who spoke anonymously about the businessman stressed.
“But in all of these, the guy has stayed focused. He has been relentless. His appetite for new challenges knows no bounds,” the person added. Wale Tinubu has received praise from various individuals and organisations. He’s been described as having “prodigious traits” that have enabled him to build Oando PLC into one of Africa’s leading indigenous energy solutions providers.
Born on June 26, 1967, in Lagos State, Nigeria, his expertise in the energy sector has earned him the nickname “The King of African Oil” by Forbes magazine and fellow business leaders and experts in the industry have praised his strategic thinking, innovative problem-solving, and commitment to excellence.
These accolades and recognition from reputable organisations demonstrate his impact and influence in the business and energy communities.With its operations outside the shores of Nigeria, around the Sao Tome and Principe Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), Oando Plc has now attained the status of Nigeria’s first indigenous International Oil Company (IOC).
This, no doubt, attests to the enormous hard work put in by the forward-looking team at the company led by its Chief Executive Officer, Mr Wale Tinubu, who decades ago, seized the gauntlet and dived into the oil and gas business in Nigeria.
A leading African exploration and production company, with world-class operations, Oando today, prides itself on being at the cutting edge of Africa’s upstream sector, with significant investments in a robust portfolio of oil and gas fields, as well as participating interests in onshore and offshore producing assets.
Its asset base covers exploration, development, and production for both oil and gas and holds interests in over 16 licenses for the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas assets located onshore, swamp, and offshore.
It has a Certified Professional Reserves Report (CPR) from D&M, the second largest in the world, which has also been auditing ENI/NAOC, Chevron, Shell and other oil Majors for decades.
With the CPR indicating Gross Recoverable reserves on the original 20 per cent Certificate of Proficiency (CoP) stake and new NAOC 20 per cent stake Net Present Value (NPV), (10 per cent is $2 billion respectively), the total value of the company has now hit $4 billion, that is, before deduction of acquisition debt of the newly acquired company plus legacy debt.
When appropriate discounts are applied, including working capital, Actual Net Asset Value (NAV) of the company, less all long-term debt, equity value is about $3 billion.
Because of its United States dollar earnings and taking into account the inflation differential between the US, which is 3 per cent against Nigeria’s over 30 per cent, devaluation is calculated to be 27 per cent this year.
“Year-on-year, this is at least 15 per cent in the best of times. The Investment will be phenomenal in Naira terms,” the person with the knowledge of the operations of the company stated.
The Nigerian company with two power plants of 500MW, that is, Kwale 1 and 2, comprising three large gas plants, now has a dedicated gas line to Eleme Petrochemicals emerging as the main supplier there as well as the ownership of a dedicated gas pipe like to LNG.
With over 200 wells in production, nine flow stations and its export terminal, Brass, Oando has now emerged as the first indigenous company to elevate to the status of a major IOC.
Today, Oando is the largest supplier of gas to Eleme Petrochemicals. The issue of insecurity hobbling its activities, aside, Oando’s peak production was 100,000 barrels a day last year and 1.5 billion scf in the case of gas.
For Oando, it’s not always about the money, but one of the key things considered is the impact that the company can have and the legacy of being able to build a world-class company and opening the door for others.
In a nutshell, Oando has for years, delivered sustainable value to its stakeholders as it continually grows its reserves by harnessing the optimum potential from its existing range of oil and gas resources, while also acquiring near-term producing assets from international oil companies.
Alongside seasoned professionals who join us from a wide range of multinational companies, the company has nurtured talented young individuals through a challenging accelerated training and exposure programme.
In 2023, Oando’s stock delivered an impressive 159 per cent year-to-date gain. This continued into 2024, as the share price increased by 14 per cent in Q1.
The release of the company’s 2023 financial results on May 31, 2024, revealed a significant turnaround with a pre-tax profit of N104.1 billion compared to a pre-tax loss of N61.8 billion in 2022.
This rally strengthened after the company announced that the federal government approved its 100 per cent acquisition of NAOC, pushing the share price to a five-year high of N47.85 and a year-to-date gain of 371.5 per cent; ranking it as the second-best performing stock on the NGX at the time.
Recently commenting on the enviable results, Wale Tinubu, said: “Despite persistent pipeline vandalism across the Niger Delta, which continues to dampen crude production, we achieved a profit after tax of N74.7 billion in 2023.
“This was largely driven by increased trading volumes from our strategic global partnerships and net foreign exchange gains on the group’s foreign currency-denominated assets, contrasting with losses on our foreign currency-denominated liabilities.”
Now set to be a clear leader in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, the acquisition of NAOC is seen as a transformative decision and a game-changer for Oando, with its capacity to potentially boost its production.
Wale Tinubu has also assured of the company’s focus on optimising these new assets, advancing production, and pursuing strategic diversification in areas such as clean energy and energy infrastructure. Clearly, this time, it seems there’s no stopping Oando.
Olaitan, an analyst, wrote from Lagos.
