Several former Shell oil traders have established a new energy trading house, Atmin, with backing from Afreximbank, as global oil majors scale down their activities across Africa.
The move comes at a time when the continent is struggling with declining oil output and growing dependence on fuel imports.
According to two trading sources familiar with the matter, the new company Africa Trading Minerals (Atmin) will be led by Ajay Oommen, a former head of Shell’s low sulphur crude desk, and will operate from Dubai.
The firm is expected to begin with crude oil trading and later expand into oil products and minerals.
The launch of Atmin reflects broader shifts in Africa’s energy landscape, as international oil companies and Western financial institutions reduce their exposure to the continent.
Under investment in oil infrastructure has led to falling production levels, even as African nations continue to spend an estimated $30 billion annually on fuel imports.
“African oil and gas reserves risk being stranded if current investment levels persist,” one source familiar with Atmin’s strategy said. “There’s a race to harness the value of these resources before the energy transition reduces demand.”
Oommen, who spent 17 years at Shell, led operations that traded up to 1.5 million barrels of crude per day, including oil sourced from African countries.
He will be joined by Vikram Thakur, who worked at Shell for 18 years in business development and structured finance, and Joseph Kanaan, who served as a trader for 11 years.
The Dubai based trading firm will start operations with a team of about 15 employees, the sources said.
In addition, Afreximbank will be the controlling shareholder in Atmin, while employees are expected to hold a 15% equity stake, according to the sources.
The pan African bank has not officially commented on its ownership structure in Atmin but confirmed the entity’s formation.
In a statement on Monday, Afreximbank said: “Afreximbank affiliated trading entity Atmin will participate actively in the trading and financing activities of the leading African oil trading companies with long term relationship with Afreximbank.”
Founded in 1993, Afreximbank is owned by African governments, institutional investors, and private stakeholders from within and outside the continent.
The bank recently launched a major initiative to support energy trade across Africa and the Caribbean.
