Nigeria, April 29 -- Seplat Energy's buyout of ExxonMobil's Nigeria onshore asset last year, a deal worth $1.3 billion at initial consideration, was the cornerstone on which it built its latest quarterly profit of N35.4 billion.

The company's earnings report, out on Monday, acknowledged the acquisition contributed nearly three-fifths of the average production for the period, driving turnover in addition to helping reverse a N2.9 billion loss recorded a year earlier.

Revenue for the quarter sped up more than four times to N1.3 trillion, compared to the same period of last year.

"Production has been strong, showing the benefit of the continuous drilling programme, investment in asset integrity and the availability of multiple evacuation ...