http://nigeriannewsblog.com/canadian-indian-utilities-study-nigeria-grid-before-bidding

Manitoba Hydro Electric Board of Canada and Power Grid Corp. of India Ltd. are conducting due diligence on Transmission Co. of Nigeria before presenting bids to manage the network operator, the privatization agency said.

Nigeria has issued the necessary documents to the two potential investors to allow them to prepare bids, Chukwuma Nwokoh, a spokesman for the Bureau of Public Enterprises, said today in an e-mailed statement, without elaborating.

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Nigeria, a nation of more than 160 million people, plans to divest majority holdings in state power utilities as it seeks investment to curb daily blackouts. Manitoba Hydro and Power Grid are two of three companies that were shortlisted to manage the network in 2007. The government subsequently suspended the sale, before inviting the companies to re-submit bids in 2010.

The privatization program includes six state-owned electricity producers and 11 heating utilities, to be sold by the second quarter. More than 500 bids for the power companies were shortlisted in June from a total of 929 submitted.

Nigeria, where power demand is almost double the supply of about 4,000 megawatts, plans to boost output to 14,019 megawatts by 2013. Electricity shortages are costing sub-Saharan Africa’s second-biggest economy 4 percent of growth in gross domestic product, Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said Nov. 28.

Electricity output will increase to 5,000 megawatts in the first quarter and 6,000 megawatts by the end of the year, according to the power ministry.

–Editors: Amanda Jordan, Tony Barrett

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We are told that 18 companies have already acquired PHCN. So is this bidding exercise unrelated?

I dont get it too @Kobojunkie

what manitoba and power grid are interested in is the management contract for the transmission company (5 years if I remember right), this has been ongoing since 2010 if I remember correctly, there was a third Irish company involved (cant remember their name now).

there are 18 successor companies, 6 generation, 1 transmission and 11 distribution.

transmission(and possibly some hydro stations) shouldn't be sold because they are more or less strategic.

P.S. nothing has been sold yet. . .it'll prolly be late this year before we reach the stage of talking about things being sold.

Who are these 18 companies?? I have still not seen a mention of even one of the companies that are supposed to have acquired PHCN, as of 15th of January 2012.

Have they already acquired PHCN(as we have been told), or they in the process to, or is this decision to acquire still to be made?

Apparently, it is NOT THE CASE that PHCN has been acquired, as was announced in reports in January. The Company has simply been unbundled into 18 different management, and delivery companies. Essentially, instead of one company handling it all. We now have 18 different companies, still managed by the Government, according to todays report


http://www.momentng.com/en/news/6294/power-minister-gives-reasons-for-redeployment-of-phcn-staff---.html

AS the Federal Government concludes plans for the winding of the operations of Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) which is in line with the Electricity Act of 2005, the Minister of Power, Professor Bart Nnaji, who spoke to the leaders of the labour union in Lagos at the weekend gave justification for government’s decision.

According to him, PHCN has been unbundled into 18 firms for management and delivery of electricity power to Nigerians without stress, while some of the staff working at the head office in Abuja were redeployed to the 18 firms as part of the measures of making them productive which is in line with government’s reforms.

He said that activities at PHCN has been technically winded up which necessitated the transfer of workers to successor firms of the power utility, while a court of competent jurisdiction is expected to liquidate PHCN in a time to be appointed by government.

I've pasted this link elsewhere before, http://www.nigeriaelectricityprivatisation.com/

it has a timeline that shows how things should progress, anyone listening to what the journalists say is going to carry last, when it comes to power they are as ignorant as piss!

What in the world are we paying billions to the Ministry of Communications for if not to ensure that news that the public is fed of Government is based on facts? Which kin deception be this one?

lies, same lies for last 10 years