Tony Elumelu Joins Seplat Board After 20% Shareholding Acquisition

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

Business mogul, Mr Tony Elumelu, has been appointed to the board of Seplat Energy Plc after acquiring 20.07 per cent equity stake in the energy firm.

Last month, the chairman of United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, acquired the shareholding of Etablissements Maurel et Prom SA (M&P) in Seplat through two of his companies, Heirs Holdings Limited and Heirs Energies Limited.

The acquisition made the Delta State-born retired banker as one of the major shareholders of Seplat Energy. This also qualified him to be a member of the organisation’s board.

In a statement to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Thursday, Seplat disclosed that Mr Elumelu has now joined the board as a non-executive director effective January 22, 2026 following the resignation of a nominee of M&P, Mr Olivier Cleret De Langavant, yesterday after being on the board since January 28, 2020.

The board expressed confidence that Mr Elumelu’s extensive experience and visionary leadership would significantly advance Seplat Energy’s strategic objectives and reinforce the company’s commitment to sustainable growth and long-term success.

“On behalf of the board and management, I wish to express our profound appreciation to Mr. Langavant for his outstanding contribution to Seplat Energy over the past six years. His expertise and commitment have been instrumental in driving our strategic initiatives.

“We warmly welcome Mr. Elumelu to the board and look forward to leveraging his wealth of experience and leadership as we continue to pursue sustainable growth and value creation for all stakeholders,” the chairman of Seplat Energy, Mr Udoma Udo Udoma, stated.

Seplat described Mr Elumelu as a distinguished African investor and philanthropist, globally recognized as one of the most prominent voices on Africa’s transformation agenda.

He is the founder and chairman of Heirs Holdings, a diversified investment company with interests across strategic sectors of the African economy, including energy, power, banking, insurance, technology, real estate, hospitality, and healthcare.

The businessman also serves as chairman of UBA, Heirs Energies, Transcorp Group, whose subsidiaries include Transcorp Power, and Transcorp Hotels Plc.

In 2010, he established The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF), the leading philanthropy dedicated to empowering African entrepreneurs across all 54 African countries.

His global influence has been widely acknowledged, including recognition as one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World (2020) and the conferment of the Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (2022).

He also serves on several global boards, including UNICEF’s Generation Unlimited Global Leadership Council and the International Monetary Fund’s Advisory Council on Entrepreneurship and Growth.