About Us
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Energy Advisory.
A Calgary-based boutique advisory firm specialising in upstream and midstream oil & gas mandates.
A Calgary-based boutique advisory firm specialising in upstream and midstream oil & gas mandates.
EL-Taprise Services Inc. provides independent, senior-level counsel on acquisitions and divestitures, asset evaluation, economic analysis, and cross-border project development, with a particular focus on the Canada-Africa energy corridor.
Founded on deep industry expertise, EL-Taprise operates at the intersection of technical rigour and commercial acumen. We serve oil & gas operators, financial institutions, national oil companies, and private equity groups that require trusted, confidential advisory support on complex energy mandates.
We maintain no affiliations with institutions or operators that could compromise objectivity. Our counsel is yours alone.
Every deliverable is grounded in technical and commercial analysis with no shortcuts, no templates, and no unsupported assumptions.
We understand transaction sensitivity. Confidentiality is not a feature, it is a baseline commitment.
Senior professionals with combined decades of experience across upstream and midstream oil & gas, capital markets, energy law, and government affairs.
Baba is the founding architect of EL-Taprise Services Inc. and the firm's primary relationship anchor across the Canada-Africa energy corridor. With over 30 years of experience spanning upstream reservoir engineering, midstream infrastructure, and cross-border commercial development, he brings a rare convergence of technical credibility and strategic business acumen.
His career spans Shell Canada, Baker Hughes, and senior executive roles in regulated commercial markets before founding EL-Taprise. He holds a Professional Engineering designation (P.Eng), an MBA in General Management, a Master's in Business & Corporate Communication, and a Master's in Petroleum Engineering. A German scholarship alumnus, Baba's work ethic reflects the precision and rigour of European engineering culture, applied to the complexity of emerging energy markets.
He maintains active government and NOC relationships across Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, and South Africa, and serves as the exclusive North American representative for two satellite-based subsurface exploration platforms: SKYGEOTECH and CC Explorations.
Dr. Osei-Mensah is one of West Africa's most respected independent subsurface geoscientists, with over 22 years of basin evaluation experience across the Niger Delta, Tano Basin, Albertine Rift, and Mozambique Channel. She began her career with a major international oil company before transitioning to independent advisory work, where she has led reserve evaluations, 3D seismic interpretation programs, and subsurface due diligence for A&D transactions totalling over $1.2 billion in aggregate asset value.
At EL-Taprise, she leads all technical mandates: reserve certification, prospect ranking, subsurface risk assessments, and the technical deployment of the firm's satellite-based exploration technologies (SKYGEOTECH TVT and CC Explorations AMRT). Her ability to translate complex subsurface data into investment-grade commercial narratives makes her a critical interface between technical teams and capital decision-makers.
She holds deep institutional relationships with GNPC (Ghana), NNPCL (Nigeria), and TPDC (Tanzania), and has served as an independent technical expert for two African government petroleum licensing rounds.
Marcus brings 18 years of energy-focused investment banking and capital markets experience, having structured and closed project finance transactions across Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, and Western Canada. He spent over a decade on the energy desk of a leading Canadian financial institution before moving into independent advisory, where he has advised on upstream asset monetization, equity raises, and infrastructure debt structuring for mid-size operators and national oil companies.
At EL-Taprise, Marcus is the critical bridge between African project sponsors and the Canadian institutional capital community: pension funds, family offices, and private equity groups with emerging market mandates. He designs commercial frameworks, stress-tests project economics, and prepares investor-ready documentation that meets international due diligence standards.
His CFA designation and deep relationships within Canada's financial community give EL-Taprise the capital markets credibility needed to move from advisory to actual deal closure.
Fatima is a seasoned energy lawyer and regulatory strategist with 16 years of experience navigating the legal and political landscapes of East Africa, North Africa, and the Gulf. She has advised governments, independent operators, and multilateral development institutions on petroleum licensing, production sharing contract negotiations, local content compliance, and cross-border regulatory harmonization.
Prior to joining EL-Taprise's advisory network, Fatima served as legal counsel to two African energy ministries and was a senior associate at an international law firm specializing in natural resources. Her practice spans Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Egypt, and Morocco, and she has deep familiarity with the legal frameworks governing emerging LNG corridors in East Africa.
At EL-Taprise, she leads all regulatory intelligence work: building compliance roadmaps, assessing political risk exposure, and ensuring clients understand the legal architecture of markets before committing capital. She is known for translating dense regulatory environments into clear, actionable guidance for non-legal executives.
Erik is a veteran midstream professional with 26 years of experience in pipeline engineering, infrastructure project delivery, and cross-border energy system planning across Canada, West Africa, and Central Asia. He has led feasibility studies, regulatory submissions, and project execution for cross-border gas pipeline systems, gas processing facilities, and LNG pre-FEED studies, several of which have advanced to final investment decision.
His career includes senior roles at major Canadian pipeline operators and international EPC firms, where he developed a reputation for rigorous project controls, stakeholder alignment across multi-jurisdictional environments, and the ability to manage complex infrastructure programs from concept through commissioning.
At EL-Taprise, Erik leads all midstream and infrastructure mandates: pipeline corridor planning, gas monetization strategies, tariff structuring, and regulatory pathway planning. His hands-on experience in African infrastructure contexts, including a cross-border gas pipeline feasibility study in West Africa, makes him uniquely suited to the firm's mandate.
Ngozi is EL-Taprise's in-country commercial engine, a dynamic business development professional with 14 years of experience spanning NOC commercial operations, international trade facilitation, and energy market development across Nigeria, Ghana, and Tanzania. She began her career as a commercial officer within the upstream division of a West African national oil company, where she developed firsthand understanding of how NOCs evaluate partners, structure agreements, and prioritize market relationships.
Her dual base in Lagos and Calgary is a deliberate and strategic asset for EL-Taprise, enabling real-time responsiveness in-country while maintaining the credibility of a Canadian-domiciled advisory firm. Ngozi manages client onboarding, opportunity pipeline tracking, proposal development, and ongoing relationship maintenance across the firm's African network. She also represents EL-Taprise at regional energy forums, trade delegations, and government-convened industry events.
She is known for her ability to read room dynamics in multi-stakeholder African environments, a skill that is as valuable as any technical credential in markets where trust and relationships drive deal flow.
Dr. Asante is one of Africa's foremost independent voices on energy sector political economy, with over 20 years of experience advising multilateral institutions, sovereign governments, and international investors on the intersection of resource governance, political risk, and investment climate. He has served as an energy sector consultant for the World Bank, the African Development Bank, and the UN Economic Commission for Africa, contributing to petroleum sector reform programs in over a dozen African countries.
At EL-Taprise, Dr. Asante provides the macro and political intelligence layer that underpins the firm's market entry work. He designs country risk scoring frameworks, briefs clients on political transitions and their impact on licensing regimes, and develops stakeholder engagement strategies that account for both formal institutions and informal power networks.
He is a published author on African petroleum governance and a regular speaker at international energy conferences in Africa, Europe, and North America.