Shoreline plans $2-bln Africa investment

LAGOS, July 6, 2015 – Nigeria’s Shoreline Group plans to sell $2 billion in bonds to purchase oil and gas assets in Africa.

CEO Kola Karim told Bloomberg that the group is eyeing Equatorial Guinea and Tanzania as potential markets for investment.

An initial sale of $500 million in five- to seven-year Eurobonds is likely to happen before the end of 2015, he said.

Shoreline operates in six African countries, with oil accounting for about 60 percent its business.

In Nigeria, Shoreline is among the local companies buying up assets left behind as international majors divest from onshore and shallow-water blocks, seeking greater security offshore.

“I’m bullish about gas and gas infrastructure,” Karim said. “If this country is going to grow that’s going to be huge.”

The CEO told Bloomberg that in spite of the drop in global oil prices, investors are still ready to “back the right horse.”

“Look at the rate of return in Europe or for a money manager in North America. And then look at the rate of the return in Nigeria. Where would you get 7 percent in the U.S. or Europe? You can only still get those returns in Africa.”

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