Table of Contents
Key Points
- Aradel Holdings' 2024 profit surged 361.1% to $160.1 million, driven by higher crude production and improved pipeline utilization.
- Revenue rose 163% to $374.4 million as crude lifting volumes increased to 3.1 million barrels, up from 2.1 million barrels in 2023.
- Total assets grew 89% to $1.12 billion, supported by strong equity growth and strategic acquisitions, including Olo and Olo West Marginal Fields.
Aradel Holdings, the Nigerian energy group led by multimillionaire Ladi Jadesimi, closed its 2024 fiscal year with a financial performance that exceeded expectations, marking a profit surge to over $160 million. This milestone secured it a spot as one of Nigeria’s most profitable companies, showcasing a dramatic 361.1 percent increase in profitability compared to the prior year.
Unaudited financial results for the year ending Dec. 31, 2024, reveal that Aradel’s profit surged to N247.8 billion ($160.1 million), up from N53.7 billion ($34.6 million) in 2023. This growth was underpinned by a revenue jump from N221.14 billion ($142.5 million) to N581.02 billion ($374.4 million), driven by increased crude oil production, enhanced pipeline utilization, and higher crude oil lifting volumes through the Alternative Crude Evacuation (ACE) route. Crude lifting volumes rose to 3.1 million barrels in 2024, up from 2.1 million barrels in 2023.
Crude oil production averaged 13,751 barrels per day during the year, a 41 percent increase from 9,739 barrels per day in 2023. Gas production also improved, rising 22 percent to 32.4 million standard cubic feet per day (5,717 barrels of oil equivalent per day), compared to 26.6 million standard cubic feet per day (4,691 barrels of oil equivalent per day) in 2023. Additionally, sales of refined petroleum products grew by 14.5 percent, with a total of 240.5 million liters sold, up from 210.1 million liters in 2023.
Aradel sees higher output, completes acquisitions
Reflecting on the performance, Aradel CEO Adegbite Falade noted: “The Company sustained its strong operational and financial performance in 2024, building on the improvements achieved in 2023. We recorded increased topline and bottomline, driven by significantly higher hydrocarbon production, the successful re-entry of Well 2ST in the Omerelu Field, which resulted in the attainment of First Oil on May, 1 2024 and increased sales volumes from our refinery operations. We successfully drilled Wells 14 and 15, marking the conclusion of our Phase 1, four-well turnkey drilling campaign with favourable results. We kicked off the second phase of the drilling campaign with Well 16, which is approaching completion.”
Falade added, “To support the anticipated production growth, we expanded the throughput capacity of our evacuation channels, positioning us to maintain strong output and efficiency levels throughout the year. We completed the acquisition of the Olo and Olo West Marginal Fields from the TotalEnergies/NNPC Joint venture, and entered an agreement to acquire a minority equity interest in Chappal Energies Mauritius Limited - an energy company focusing on investments in deep value and brownfield upstream opportunities within Africa.”
Aradel’s assets surge to $1.12 billion
Founded in 1992 by the late Godwin Aret Adams as Niger Delta Exploration & Production Plc, Aradel Holdings has transformed under Jadesimi’s leadership into a fully integrated energy group. Its portfolio spans the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors, with interests in several oil and gas fields.
The group’s financial success in 2024 also reflected its operational milestones, including the ramped-up production of hydrocarbons and the re-entry of the Omerelu Field. These achievements contributed to increased sales and robust earnings growth. It is also an equity participant in the Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, the acquirer of Shell’s 100 percent equity interest in the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) Limited, for which Ministerial Consent has been obtained
As a result, Aradel’s total assets surged by 89 percent to N1.744 trillion ($1.12 billion) as of Dec. 31, 2024, up from N923.4 billion ($594.8 million) in 2023. Total equity grew from N704.6 billion ($454 million) to N1.39 trillion ($895.4 million), while retained earnings increased from N209.2 billion ($134.8 million) to N384.04 billion ($247.4 million).
