Femi Otedola: The Rejoining Of The Billionaire Club – By Emeka Chiakwelu

Posted by admin Articles, Columnists, Emeka Chiakwelu, NNP Columnists Tuesday, March 10th, 2015

Written By Emeka Chiakwelu | NNP | March 2015 –

Femi Otedola has rejoined the club of global billionaires, a momentous
wealth sourced with outstanding gains he made in the petroleum industry.
The Forbes magazine, the most recognized and acceptable expert on the
evaluation of wealth metrics rated the worth of Otedola at one billion
dollars ($1 billion). The significant is not so much of the accumulated
wealth but rather a testament of the economic growth in Nigeria and
Otedola rejoining the club of the world richest people.

According to Forbes: Nigerias Femi Otedola returns to Forbes list of
billionaires for the first time since 2009 following a sharp rise in the
share price of petroleum marketing company Forte Oil, despite the drop in
oil prices in 2014. Otedola is the controlling shareholder of Forte Oil,
with a 78% stake. The company owns gas stations and fuel storage depots
and manufactures its own line of engine oils.

Otedola is a 21st century business tycoon and capitalistic executive in
wealth creation and a vanguard in the capitalistic enterprise. He is the
founder and Chief executive of Zenon Petroleum and Gas. And Zenon
Petroleum & Gas has played a vital and significant role in oil and gas
industry in Nigerias economic growth.

Zenon has what it takes to make a strategic move in exploration and
refining of oil and gas in Nigeria. There are many opportunities in the
energy industry especially in oil refining at this point in time. Lately,
Nigeria has been having problems with oil subsidy issue with deepening
subsidy scandal. All these would have been averted with functioning
ingenious oil refineries. The countrys state of affairs can be
attributed to the poor and under performances of local oil refineries.

Nigeria must encourage local companies to take advantage of the
opportunities in the energy industry especially in petroleum refining. It
is important that private industries in Nigeria to participate in this
industry for needed energy availability. First and foremost, it will bring
jobs to our unemployed and underemployed work force. Private industries
are more efficient than government in operating business entities due to
lack of crony capitalism, in addition massive inefficiency is associated
with government run companies.

The challenge that threatens oil and petroleum wealth is the decreasing
price of oil and its glut in the global market. For Otedolas wealth to be
maintained and increase a diversification is indispensable in the sphere
of wealth creation.

Emeka Chiakwelu, Principal Policy Strategist at AFRIPOL on congratulating
Femi Otedola on his business success, also acknowledged that the business
executive have what it takes to be at the zenith of business ladder.

________________________

Emeka Chiakwelu, Principal Policy Strategist at AFRIPOL. His works have
appeared in Wall Street Journal, Huffington Post, Forbes and many other
important journals around the world. His writings have also been cited in
many economic books, publications and many institutions of higher learning
including tagteam Harvard Education. Africa Political & Economic Strategic
Center (AFRIPOL) is foremost a public policy center whose fundamental
objective is to broaden the parameters of public policy debates in Africa.
To advocate, promote and encourage free enterprise, democracy, sustainable
green environment, human rights, conflict resolutions, transparency and
probity in Africa. info@afripol.org www.afripol.orgwp_posts