Team size: Twelve

Defolu has over 27 years of post-qualification experience and is a co-founding member of FIRST Exploration and Petroleum Development Company Limited (“FIRST E&P”), where he has served as General Counsel since the company’s inception in July 2012. Defolu has led FIRST E&P and its legal function to successfully acquire interests in several petroleum mining leases and petroleum prospecting licences in Nigeria, with current total production exceeding 60,000 barrels of oil per day, achieved primarily from greenfield developments.

Defolu has led deal teams in FIRST E&P and its affiliates in various M&A and financing transactions and projects for oil and gas developments, with a total value exceeding USD 7 billion. In 2025, he completed negotiations for FIRST E&P (together with other partners in the Renaissance Africa Energy consortium) to acquire 100% equity in the erstwhile Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited, and managed negotiations leading to the successful execution of a Gas Sale and Purchase Agreement between FIRST E&P and NLNG. Defolu also recently negotiated fabrication and transportation & installation contracts for a wellhead platform, oversaw the debottlenecking of an FPSO for FIRST E&P, and completed all negotiations with the NUPRC for the award of two deepwater offshore blocks in Nigeria to FIRST E&P.

During his career, Defolu worked with a major Nigerian commercial law firm (Aluko & Oyebode) and an international oil company (erstwhile BG Group Plc, now part of Shell Petroleum International) in the UK, Singapore, China and Nigeria, gaining valuable experience in navigating and resolving complex issues across varied sectors over the last twenty-five years. Defolu is an expert in commercial upstream and midstream matters, construction and procurement for offshore developments, corporate governance, anti-corruption, and other matters across the oil and gas value chain.

Defolu is currently Chair of the Corporate & Regulatory Counsel Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association – Section on Business Law. He holds a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Lagos, is qualified at the Nigerian Law School, and holds a Master of Laws degree from University College London.

What are the most significant cases or transactions that your legal team has recently been involved in?

Execution of a Gas Sale and Purchase Agreement between FIRST E&P and NLNG; execution of a Fabrication Services Contract between FIRST E&P and Aveon Offshore for a wellhead monopile platform; execution of a Transport and Installation Contract between FIRST E&P and Marine Platform for the debottlenecking project of FPSO Abigail Joseph; and completion of the acquisition of the former Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) by the Renaissance Africa Energy Consortium (of which FIRST E&P is a member) via a Sale and Purchase Agreement for 100% of the equity of SPDC.

What strategies has your legal team adopted to manage disputes and mitigate risks in Nigeria’s dynamic business environment?

Some strategies we have employed, particularly in dealing with contractors on our projects, include placing major emphasis on resolving disputes at the working-team level between an operator and a contractor before escalation through multi-layered dispute resolution mechanisms, including senior management discussions, negotiation, mediation, expert determination, arbitration or litigation. We ensure that the legal team works closely with the procurement and operational teams, allowing potential issues to be identified and resolved before they develop into major disputes. Effective contract management by the operator is critical to achieving a timely resolution of disputes. Management philosophy and buy-in, which enable mechanisms for dispute avoidance and prevention, are essential. It is also important to maintain an overarching, solution-driven relationship between contracting and operational teams and the contractors.

How is your legal department leveraging technology to improve compliance monitoring, contract management, or governance reporting?

At FIRST E&P, we have extensively employed digital transformation through artificial intelligence and other technological tools to improve compliance monitoring, contract management, governance reporting and related processes. We have successfully digitalised all our workflows, enabling effective management of these workstreams and seamless utilisation of these tools by employees through regular training.