International Finance Corporation (IFC) is investing $60 million in Africa-focused oil & gas explorer Delonex Energy, led by former Cairn India chief Rahul Dhir, as part of a large round led by Warburg Pincus. Last month, Warburg Pincus said it was leading a $600 million investment in Delonex.
According to a disclosure by IFC, it will hold 10 per cent stake in the venture while Warburg Pincus, through two entities including a co-investment vehicle managed by it, will own 88 per cent. The remaining 2 per cent stake will be held by the Delonex management.
Warburg Pincus is, in effect, the main sponsor of the venture although Delonex will be run by an independent management team including Rahul Dhir, former British Petroleum and ex-Schlumberger employees, as well as former senior managers from Cairn India. The company is headquartered in London, with subsidiaries in the UK, India and Kenya.
The money raised will be used to fund set-up costs, acquire oil & gas assets and also to develop such assets. Delonex is in the process of building a portfolio of oil & gas assets in the East and Central African regions through acquisitions, farm-ins and direct awards from host governments. The management team of the company is pre-screening their first investments.
The firm’s key strategic areas include the East African Continental Rift System, which extends from the Red Sea through to Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Mozambique, and the Central African Rift System from Chad to South Sudan and the coastal margins of East Africa.
(Edited by Sanghamitra Mandal)