• Vigeo Consortium, nine more firms pay up

•NERC, NBET, IPPs meet on securitisation framework in power sector

Chineme Okafor

Thirteen of the preferred bidders for successor generation and distribution companies created from the unbundling of Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) have finally paid up their 75 per cent outstanding balance of bid prices for their acquired assets to beat the payment deadline, which expired Wednesday.

Three of the bidders, West Power and Gas, Integrated Energy Distribution and Marketing Company and Amperion Power Company Limited, were the first to beat the deadline, as exclusively reported by THISDAY Wednesday.

While West Power, the preferred bidder for Eko Distribution Company (Disco) Plc and Integrated Energy, for both Ibadan and Yola Distribution Companies paid up the 75 per cent balance for the distribution and generation companies being sold to investors through the privatisation process, Amperion made a part-payment of $45.16 million (N7 billion) for the 414 megawatts (MW) Geregu I thermal power station. By yesterday, it had paid the balance.

THISDAY checks revealed yesterday that 10 more bidders met their financial obligations under the privatisation of the power sector while one of the bidders made part-payment to meet up with the final payment deadline set by the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), which is superintending the privatisation process.

Also yesterday, the Independent Power Producers Association of Nigeria (IPPAN) met with the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trading Company Plc (NBET) to address issues that could militate against its eventual construction of licensed power plants in Nigeria.

It was gathered that the preferred bidders who had fully met the payment deadline as at the expiration of the 5pm deadline yesterday included NEDC/KEPCO, the preferred bidder for Ikeja Distribution Company; Vigeo Consortium, for Benin Distribution Company; 4 Power Consortium for Port Harcourt Distribution Company; Aura Energy for Jos Distribution Company; Kann Consortium for Abuja Distribution Company and Sahelian Power for Kano Distribution Company.

Also, Transcorp/Woodrock Consortium, the preferred bidder for Ughelli Power Plc; Mainstream Energy Ltd, the preferred bidder for Kainji Power Plc; Amperion for Geregu, KEPCO for Egbin and CMEC/EUAFRIC Energy JV, which made part-payments for the acquisition of Sapele Power Plc, have met the deadline.

Following the 75 per cent payment earlier made on Tuesday by West Power and Gas and Integrated Energy Distribution and Marketing Company for Eko, Ibadan and Yola distribution companies respectively, THISDAY gathered yesterday in Abuja that the BPE had as at press time confirmed the payments made by these bidders.

However, Interstate, which is the preferred bidder for Enugu Distribution Company and North-South Power Company, for Shiroro Power Plc, might have missed the deadline for the payment of the 75 per cent balance because as at the 5pm deadline, their payments, if any, had not been confirmed.

The privatisation agency had insisted that it would not grant the request for extension of deadline for the payment of the 75 per cent outstanding balance by the preferred bidders of the various generation and distribution companies.

Following the rejection of the request, the BPE had from Tuesday begun to take in payments from some of the preferred bidders, starting with West Power and Gas, which paid $101.25 million as being full and final payment for the acquisition of Eko Disco as well as Integrated Energy Distribution and Marketing Company, which was said to have paid $160 million for the acquisition of Ibadan and Yola Discos.

Sources close to the transaction stated that Vigeo paid $96.75 million for Benin Disco, being 75 per cent of its outstanding balance to acquire 60 per cent of the stake in the utility company, while NEDC/KEPCO paid $407 million as full and final payment for its interest in Egbin Power Station.

NEDC/KEPCO also paid its 75 per cent outstanding balance for its acquisition of Ikeja Discos, which is $101 million; it had initially paid $33.75 million six months ago, being its initial deposit of 25 per cent for its acquisition.

The duo of Transcorp/Woodrock Consortium and Mainstream Energy Ltd was also confirmed to have made payments to beat the deadline.

In line with the privatisation transaction schedule and guidelines, it is expected that any of the preferred bidders that missed the payment deadline will automatically forfeit its initial 25 per cent deposit for its respective assets while at the same time losing its preferred bidder's status in the process.

Some of the bidders had last week started to drag their feet in the hope that the payment deadline would be extended by NCP, which alongside the BPE eventually dashed their hopes on Monday when they both insisted that the August 21 payment deadline remained sacrosanct as stipulated in the Request for Proposals (RFPs).

The bidders had expressed concern that the federal government had not been able to meet the conditions precedent that would give their lenders comfort to finance the acquisitions.

Meanwhile, Eastern Electric Company, the reserve bidder for the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company, has declared its preparedness to pay $126 million for the takeover of the company, which provides power to the South-eastern part of the country.

The company expressed its willingness in a statement Wednesday by its communication consultant, Mr C. Don Adinuba, following the inability of Interstate Electrics to pay the remaining 75 per cent of the bid price at the close of payment Wednesday.

The consortium was formed by the five South-east state governments; Nestoil, a major indigenous operator in the upstream sector of the petroleum industry; Aba Power Ltd and Geometric Power Ltd, led by former Power Minister Bart Nnaji and Diamond Bank’s founding chairman Pascal Dozie, among others.

“We have a robust and matchless combination of global best practices and the best experience of emerging economies.

“We shall not have difficulty raising the funds. The Bureau of Public Enterprises is still holding on to our $10m bank bond raised when we were bidding for the Enugu Disco.

“As all Nigerians must have known, the 141MW Aba integrated power project built by Geometric Power and which cost over $450 million is about to be commissioned,” the statement said.

In a related development, IPPAN Wednesday met in Abuja with NERC and NBET officials to address issues that could militate against its eventual construction of licensed power plants in Nigeria.

Amongst the issues raised by IPPAN as part of its challenges include, inadequate gas supply to guarantee its signing of a functional Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with NBET, the seeming unsettled capitalisation status of the NBET as well as inadequate metering facility with the sector.

Chairman of IPPAN, Prof. Jerry Gana, stated at a meeting with the regulatory authorities that its members were not fully convinced of the financial capacity of the NBET to make full payment guarantees for powers taken by distribution companies.

He said: “We are working very strongly on adequate power supply, but some issues are still pending. We still have problems with gas supply. We can’t sign a PPA without gas supply.

“Please help us remove that bottleneck. There is much more to be done. The issue of NBET and guarantee for power is also not fully resolved.”

IPPAN also questioned the functionality of the World Bank-enabled Partial Risk Guarantee (PRG), alleging that it was not functional.

But the Managing Director of NBET, Rumundaka Wonodi, explained that the agency had been recapitalised to make PPA payments to generation companies for up to six months on a stretch while remittances from distribution companies are taken in.

Wonodi further noted that in addition to its existing financial outlay, the agency expects to take in about $100 million as part of three months security deposits from distribution companies, $350 million from the federal government launched Eurobond and $312 million escrowed by the NCP as proceeds from the sale of Egbin power plant.

He further stated that parts of the proceeds from the sale of power plants under the National Integrated Power Projects (NIPPs) are expected to be given to it for recapitalisation, adding that the PPA framework has been tightly worked out to the benefit of the sector.



http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/13-bidders-pay-75-balance-for-power-assets/156944/

all we need is constant power supply and not story

Guh

3rd

God bless Nigeria.
God bless GEJ.
GEJ till 2019.
I can vouch that with time, we would be enjoying 16-18hrs constant power. 24hrs maybe in a few years.

APC wants to give us 40000mw overnight
I laugh in chinese, even my 5yr old neighbour can write a better manifesto or whatever that was.

All I want is Constant Power Supply...

Why Does Ghana, who we supply power, have constant power supply and we don't?

Can someone explain?

Give us Steady Light.

2s£xy:
All I want is Constant Power Supply...

Why Does Ghana, who we supply power, have constant power supply and we don't?

Can someone explain?

Because OBJ, Buhari and all other past leaders did nothing.

FineBro: Give us Steady Light.

The good thing now is that this your demand will soon be going solely to the new power sector owners. Happy days ahead!

Up nepa! !!!!!!!!!!!!

either the bad people like it,or not,i have a dream that one day,generators shall be a thing of the past,Up Nepa shout shall be forgotten,fridge will no longer be used as cupboard,an Nepa cable wont be use to spread clothes again...

my dream will surely come to pass....

All this plenty talks are not necessary



my own is. . ...



When do we start having constant electricity ?

all these cork and bull stories... Na light i wan see o, no be talk talk

2s£xy:
All I want is Constant Power Supply...

Why Does Ghana, who we supply power, have constant power supply and we don't?

Can someone explain?

Ask obasanjo and northern leaders that have ruled since independence.

In my life, I will never vote for a Northerner.

Really?

The same story, Just talk, no Action.............

MEILYN: The same story, Just talk, no Action.............

How is several companies paying billions of dollars just talk? Abi you never chop dis morning? lol

Sirniyeh: all we need is constant power supply and not story

God bless u brother al i wanna c'd'lite kuz 4 d'past 2 wks me i neva c'light hia oo nd ASUU is even compoundin d'whole probz....lyk ma bro wil alwz say God dey

Just to add that I did confirm from PHCN staff yesterday that they have been getting paid. So give and take, by end of september, we will have completely new faces and new business entities to relate with. Now we know where to go to lay our complains and who to hold responsible. No more buying of transformer for PHCN or extortion. Hopefully, before december, when the new companies have fully settled, the issue of wrong billing will be gone and the prepaid meters will be distributed. Happy days are here again!

theoctopus: Just to add that I did confirm from PHCN staff yesterday that they have been getting paid. So give and take, by end of september, we will have completely new faces and new business entities to relate with. Now we know where to go to lay our complains and who to hold responsible. No more buying of transformer for PHCN or extortion. Hopefully, before december, when the new companies have fully settled, the issue of wrong billing will be gone and the prepaid meters will be distributed. Happy days are here again!

In sarkodie's voice...What Else?...bro notin ooo..we are on way to economic prosperity

[quote author=awodman]
no be here ooo

wht of bidders dat wll supply onitsha, nnewi nd others, they ar nt mentioned. Bravo!!! to GEj. For dose dat want d light now, is a process nd i fink FG has tken a bold step. 4rm d weight of d info. dis one is 4 real, lets giv dem time.

When will all this gist end? (PHCN=Please Hold Candle Near)So many empty promises yet we stay in darkness.Next page jare*Mistchewwwwwwwwwwwwwww*

I am not satisfied. I really need to be educated on this because a lot of us seem to belief it is such an heculian task to embark, and further reports have painted it so.

How come Benin Republic has constant power and 'Gaint of Africa' does not? What does it take? What steps?

theoctopus:

Because OBJ, Buhari and all other past leaders did nothing.

Na ya papa get the Gas them dey use abi?

Yungwizzzy:

sharap dia

who told you you supply power to ghana??

NIGERIA IS ON THE MOVE!!
THIS IS BIG. VERY VERY BIG.
If we moved 400,000 telecom lines to 120 million lines in 12 years.
Then I see us moving from 4000MW to 40,000MW in 7 years.

This is big big big!!

Industrialization would start in earnest.

This is a welcome development.Its just a matter of time,PHCN will be a thing of d past just like NITELL. .

Good news
It will not be smooth at first. But it will be at the end of the day.

PapaBrowne: NIGERIA IS ON THE MOVE!!
THIS IS BIG. VERY VERY BIG.
If we move 400,000 telecom lines to 120 million lines in 12 years. Then I see us moving from 4000MW to 40,000MW in 7 years.

Wireless mode of communication is far easier to forecast. Just fine tune your transmitter and receiving devices and wolla growth is somewhat guaranteed.
As for power generation and transmission, it's definitely not straight forward

2s£xy:
I am not satisfied. I really need to be educated on this because a lot of us seem to belief it is such an heculian task to embark, and further reports have painted it so.

How come Benin Republic has constant power and 'Gaint of Africa' does not? What does it take? What steps?

It is indeed an herculean task to provide constant power for 170 million people. Make no mistake about that. But the real problem is, there has to be a process that will start and continue from administration to administration. No country in the world built their power infrastructure in 4 years. Not even in 10 years. If successive goernments having been adding their quota to the process, we should have been on at least 20,000 MW. There was a major gap from the 80s to the 2000s. There was no serious development of power infrastructure between 1980 and 2005. That is a 25 years gap. During that period, our population probably doubled. Some transformers in some communities today were installed as far back as 1975. So it is really not difficult to understand how this whole thing deteriorated. Obasanjo tried to start something but couldnt achieve much in terms of building the infrastructure. Yaradua's 3 years was dormant. GEJ came in and did what a focussed president should do and that is, attack the problem systemically. It takes years to build power plants. Especially when you consider that we dont manufacture any part of the process here. Everything apart from the gas or water is imported.