Global: Vivo Energy Appoints Nimit Shah as Chief Financial Officer

Vivo Energy, a prominent distributor of Shell and Engen-branded fuels and lubricants across Africa, has announced the appointment of Nimit Shah as its Chief Financial Officer.

Nimit will assume his new role and join the Board of Vivo Energy Ltd by the end of May 2024.

As part of a smooth transition plan, Jay Gleacher, currently serving as Interim CFO, will collaborate with Nimit during an initial handover period before resuming his role as Investment Director at Vitol.

Nimit Shah brings a wealth of experience to Vivo Energy, having previously worked at Helios Investment Partners, an Africa-focused private equity firm, for 15 years. During his tenure, he served as a senior Partner in the investment team and held the position of Head of Capital Markets.

Nimit’s familiarity with Vivo Energy runs deep, as he played a key role in the original deal that saw Vitol and Helios Investment Partners acquire Shell’s downstream Africa business to establish Vivo Energy in 2011. He remained closely involved with Vivo Energy until Helios divested its shareholding two years ago.

During his time at Helios, Nimit Shah spearheaded numerous deals across more than 30 African markets, totaling over $2 billion in value. These transactions included notable investments in companies such as GBFoods Africa, Interswitch, Wananchi, Continental Outdoor, and OVH Energy.

Before joining Helios Investment Partners in 2008, Nimit served as a Director at Lehman Brothers. He began his career as a strategy consultant at Arthur D Little.

Commenting on the appointment, Stan Mittelman, CEO of Vivo Energy, said: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank Jay for his leadership, enthusiasm and vision since taking on the Interim CFO role at the start of last year.  I am pleased that following his handover with Nimit, Jay will continue to be one of Vivo Energy’s Board Directors, Chairman of SVL, and will remain heavily involved in our business.  The Board and I are delighted to welcome Nimit to Vivo Energy.  His record of financial leadership, understanding of Africa – and Vivo Energy in particular – and his commercial acumen mean that he is ideally suited to the role.  I look forward to working with Nimit to continue to capitalise on the exciting growth opportunities for Vivo Energy.”