American buys aviation firm to serve Turkana oil
What you need to know:
- A former US Navy Seal member has acquired a local aviation firm to provide logistics to Kenya’s nascent oil and gas industry.
Oil discovery in Turkana continues to attract new investments with international companies eyeing a slice of the cake.
A former US Navy Seal member has acquired a local aviation firm to provide logistics to Kenya’s nascent oil and gas industry.
The Business Daily reported Tuesday that Mr Erik Prince has bought a 49 per cent stake in the Kilifi-based Kijipwa Aviation with the aim of providing passenger and freight services to oil and mining firms in remote areas such as Lokichar and Lokichogio in Turkana.
Mr Prince is the founder of Blackwater, the controversial US defence contractor that was fiercely criticised for its work in Iraq.
The ex-marine is now the executive chairman of DVN Holdings, a Hong Kong Stock Exchange-listed firm, to which he sold his aviation and logistics firm Frontier Services Group last November.
SHARE SWAP DEAL
The transaction valued his stake at Kijipwa at Sh1.9 billion and was paid for in cash and share swap deal that earned Mr Prince a 15.3 per cent stake in DVN Holdings and board chairmanship.
The former Navy Seal officer received Sh258 million ($3 million) in cash and a further 205.12 million shares at a price of HK$0.73 apiece, according to regulatory filings at the Hong Kong bourse.
“My new role as chairman of a Hong Kong listed company will allow me to pursue my vision for Africa and globally in a transparent manner,” he said.
A recent report by US-based research firm Casey says East Africa is expected to be one of the world’s most important energy producers by 2040.
The study titled The Gobal Race for African Oil says East Africa will be raking in trillions of dollars as energy-thirsty economies like China buy the resources.
