Seplat Energy :Dr ABC Orjiako  bows out  after 13 years of great service 

 

.As London Stock Exchange commend his outstanding achievements

UGO AMADI

The recent celebrations of the many achievements of Dr ABC Orjiako, the pioneer chairman of Seplat Energy Plc, Nigeria’s leading energy company by the highly respected and reputable  London Stock Exchange (LSE) has once again indicated that he is one who is not only outstanding at what he does, but a man who also stands head and shoulders apart from his peers.

Dr. Bryant (ABC) Orjiako, For starters is not your regular fellow. He ranks well and truly as an unusual businessman and  magnate, He is indeed one man who has demonstrated a great capacity to show the way to lead men where they ought to be and shown that nothing is so conclusively proves a man’s ability to lead others as what he does from day to day to lead himself.

 

An industrialist per excellent, seasoned leader, proficient administrator, entrepreneur,  oil mogul, astute medical practitioner, , investor, philanthropist, Dr. ABC Orjiako, is a man of great measure, highly  cerebral  his greateness  is perceived in terms of the strength of his leadership commitments, the genuineness of his relationships, the honesty of his purpose, the silent bravery of his principles, his capacity to suffer and his disposition to bear in order to achieve success and put smiles in the lives of many.

 

Today , Seplat Energy Plc which he was the first  Chairman and co-founder is listed on both the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) and London Stock Exchange is driving the country’s energy transition towards cleaner, more reliable energy.

Evenly ,we join the community of business patriot, associates, great men of honor to salute a distinguished fellow , Dr. ABC Orjiako  as bows out in great honour after after 13 years as the Board Chairman of Seplat Energy Plc.

Orjiako in his reaction at the event in London, said: “It is the magnanimity of the LSE (London Stock Exchange) and LSEG’s Africa Advisory Group (LAAG) that made it possible for us to be here today. It is not an easy thing to ring the opening bell of the LSE; and for me to use this to mark my exit as the chairman of Seplat brings very old memories to me starting from 2014 when we first rang the bell to list our security in this market.”

“One of the things that gladdens my heart is the fact that everything on the board turned green as we rang the bell; this is very important for us in Seplat. Colour green not only signifies good performance in the market but remains a very important symbol in Seplat.  It symbolises life, it symbolises what this company represents particularly sustainability and business,” Orjiako said.

 

The pioneer chairman of Seplat further said: “I want to thank you for this great opportunity.  I am the last of the founders of Seplat to leave. For Seplat, it is a promise kept. It is a very strong and apt statement to say that Seplat believes in enduring strong and robust corporate governance practices. We made up our minds from the beginning that this company will fly and grow if we maintain very good corporate governance. So, when we started, we made a promise that the chairmanship of this company would be handed to an independent non-executive chairman”.

Julia Hogget, chief executive officer, London Stock Exchange Plc said, “I have had the opportunity occasionally to meet members in person, but this is really the first opportunity. Not all of us, but a lot of us have managed to come for this important occasion and to acknowledge the many achievements that you (ABC Orjiako) have had in your career.”

Speaking further at the event, she said: “I know this isn’t the end. We need to make sure that this doesn’t feel like an Eulogy but a transitioning from one remarkable stage in life to the next. And we are also thoroughly delighted that we get to keep you with LAAG, because it has been such an important part. Your contributions are such an important part. It is fair to say that there have been many African successes in London since the outset of the advisory group. But Seplat Energy for me, when I was working through this with the team, actually feels like an exemplar of so much of what LAAG is about, but also what we are seeking to achieve for the future as well. And the trailblazing that you have done as chairman, I think is an illustration of that.”

 

“Seplat Energy was also the first Nigerian company to list ordinary shares simultaneously on the London Stock Exchange and the NGX and $535million was successfully raised during that initial public offering (IPO), which was both oversubscribed and the largest IPO in subject,” Hogget noted.

 

“It says a lot about the people at the London Stock Exchange that one of the things that they wanted me to make sure I equally reference, apart from the IPO, was the financial innovation that took place following the listing in terms of the cross border settlement mechanism. It is a really an important point. It is also that innovation that enabled the seamless transverse shares between the UK and Nigerian share registers. This mechanism has paved the way for other issuers to use the “Seplat Model” to dual list in London and the UK.

 

Innovations paved the way for massive effect and I think that is part of the history of the organization as well. So Seplat, apart from being an energy company, has become a financial platform for investors following the IPO. All these with you at the helm, made Seplat the first”.

 

Also speaking at the event, Basil Omiyi, Chairman, Seplat Energy Plc said: “I am delighted to speak on behalf of the Board and management of Seplat Energy on this special occasion organized by the LSE and LAAG in honour of Dr ABC Orjiako, the Pioneer Chairman of Seplat Energy in recognition of his accomplishments with the Exchange and to mark his retirement from the board of Seplat Energy.”

 

“We appreciate the kind gesture by the Exchange and London Stock Exchange Africa Advisory Group (LAAG) to honour him.  Our Pioneer Chairman, Dr. ABC Orjiako, who is very well known to you, has led our company to build and nurture a very rewarding relationship with the Exchange since its listing” Omiyi noted

“We are happy to be seen as an example for others to follow and thank the Exchange for the role it has played in enabling Seplat become the Nigerian Champion it has grown to be,” he added.

Also speaking, Suneel Bakhshi, chairman of LSEG’s Africa Advisory Group said: “It is a pleasure to say there is a natural respect from all LAAG members for ABC. I have seen that over the years, when we had some meetings in London, Nairobi, Abuja and hopefully many more to come. I feel that ABC symbolises the spirit of LAAG in so many ways and obviously your confidence with what you achieved in Seplat supports that. You are the reason far beyond the successes of Seplat. We look forward to many more years ABC.”

A dive into his profile shows that ABC Orjiako after obtaining an M.B.B.Ch. degree in 1985 from the College of Medical Sciences, University of Calabar, Nigeria, he trained as a General Surgeon at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Lagos.

He later sub-specialised in orthopaedic and trauma surgery and became a fellow of the West African College of Surgeons in 1996. In 2006, he completed the OPM program of the Harvard Business School.

He established and managed various companies in the upstream, downstream and service sectors of the oil and gas industry in Nigeria. These include Abbeycourt Trading Company Limited, Abbeycourt Energy Services Limited, Zebbra Energy Limited and Shebah Exploration and Production Company Limited. He also has other business interests in construction, real estate development, pharmaceuticals and shipping. He went into full-time business in 1996 after eleven years of active medical practice.

In 2009, his company Shebah Exploration and Production Company and Platform Petroleum Limited co-founded SEPLAT. Since inception, he became the first Chairman spearheading new business development and providing leadership on strategy and stakeholder relationships. Under his leadership, the company has become a highly reputable Nigerian Independent recording several milestones comprising successfully closing landmark acquisitions, growing the company’s oil and gas production exponentially and becoming a well-run company with strong and transparent governance.

He has steered the company, in the space of five years, to steadily emerge a global brand while attaining its remarkable growth aspirations. Under his watch, the company pioneered dual listing of its shares on the Nigerian and London stock exchanges in 2014. In recognition of the company’s achievements, SEPLAT recently won the Best Africa listing 2014 award by Africa Investors (Ai), “Mid-Cap Company of The Year 2014” award by the Oil and Gas Council and was named a “Global Growth Company 2014” by the World Economic Forum in 2014.

 

Dr. ABC Orjiako is on the board of companies in various sectors; he is the chairman of Neimeth Pharmaceutical International plc, which is listed on the NSE; a director of MPI, which is listed on NYSE Euronext Paris and a director of Leadway Assurance Company Limited. By invitation of the London Stock Exchange, he became a founding member of the London Stock Exchange Group’s Africa Advisory Group (“LAAG”), a select group working towards generating and channeling ideas and problem solve towards the issues affecting the African continent from a commercial and social perspective.

Consolidating his firm commitment to philanthropy, he founded the Daniel Orjiako Memorial Foundation (‘‘DOMF’’) in 1996 in honour of his late father, Chief Daniel O. Orjiako. Since inception, the DOMF has executed numerous programmes in rural Nigerian communities in education, healthcare services and economic empowerment through agriculture aimed at providing welfare and breaking the poverty cycle.

In recognition of his services to humanity, Pope John Paul II in 2003 bestowed on him a Knighthood of the Order of St. Gregory the Great (KSGG).

He has received numerous awards and recognitions for his service to humanity and his entrepreneurial achievements. Some of these notable awards include the Distinguished Alumnus Award and Doctor of Sciences (D.Sc. Honoris Causa) by the University of Calabar, Nigeria in 2001; Platinum Award of the West African College of Surgeons in 2006;  National Honours as an Officer of the Federal Republic (“OFR”), conferred on him by the President of Nigeria in 2012; the coveted Zik (Nnamdi Azikiwe) Prize in the Professional Leadership category by the Public Policy Research and Analysis Centre (PPRAC) and African Business Executive of the Year 2014, by the Oil and Gas Council.

Dr. ABC Orjiako was born and raised in Nigeria. He is happily married with four children.