GNPC, Explorco refute claims of withholding data in Springfield valuation

The Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) and its subsidiary, GNPC Explorco, have firmly rejected allegations of misconduct surrounding the valuation of Springfield Exploration and Production Limited’s interest in the West Cape Three Points Block 2.

The state-owned entities were responding to what they term “misleading reports” circulating after a recent press release from the Ministry of Energy and Green Transition.

A key point of contention is the data used by Sewell, the firm engaged for the valuation. GNPC and Explorco state that their executives did not provide Sewell with secondary data from a 2020 report.

They point to a disclaimer within the Sewell report itself, which states that the “data used in the report was provided by Springfield solely.”

According to the corporations, Springfield did not inform GNPC of its intention to submit this data to Sewell, and they had “no knowledge of Springfield procuring this report.” They maintain that the decision to supply the 2020 data was “Springfield’s sole decision,” and therefore, GNPC and Explorco “could not have had the opportunity to provide a 2024 appraisal data available to them.”

The corporations also directly addressed accusations that they withheld more recent 2024 primary data. They stated that GNPC and Explorco executives “did not withhold the 2024 primary data,” adding that they “were not in control of the process and therefore could not have withheld the 2024 primary data in the first place.”

They further denied any intent to inflate valuation numbers, reiterating their lack of control over the data selection process for the report.

GNPC and Explorco strongly dismissed allegations of a conspiracy leading to a potential overpayment of state funds. “There is no such conspiracy,” their statement read.

They clarified that “GNPC has not valued Springfield’s asset at US$700 million and has also not advised the Government to pay Springfield on the basis of any such valuation.”

Explaining their standard commercial practice, the corporations noted that they “evaluate assets on the basis of various scenarios and assumptions,” which can lead to different perspectives. They emphasised that this process “does not constitute a decision on any particular value at any time.”

The statement concluded by assuring the public of a transparent government-led process. It confirmed that the government is “in the process of conducting a transparent process to engage a competent technical entity and a Transaction advisor to conduct an independent technical and commercial valuation on this and other assets using up-to-date data.”

GNPC and Explorco affirmed that the government’s decision regarding the asset “has been very transparent and has been taken in the best interest of the people of Ghana.”