The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), says 16 firms have been pre-qualified for the privatisation of five National Integrated Power Projects (NIPPs) in Nigeria.
The Director-General, BPE, Alex Okoh, announced this at the Investor Pre-bid Conference for the privatisation of the five NIPP plants namely: Geregu, Omotosho, Olorunsogo, Calabar and Benin-Ihovbor which was held in Abuja on Tuesday.
He listed the16 pre-qualified bidders as: Mota-Engil Nig, Amperion Power, Sifax Energy, Pacific Energy Company Ltd and Globeleq Africa Limited.
The others are: Geoplex Drillteq Limited, Asfalizo Acquisition Ltd, Launderhill PJB, Lauderhill Tata, Unicorn Power Genco Ltd, Connaught Energy Services Ltd, ENL Consortium Ltd, Ardova Plc, Central Electric and Utilities Ltd, North South Power Consortium, and Quantum Megawatt Consortium.
Earlier, Okoh noted that the power sector remains a viable investment in the country given the low per-capital megawatts recording in the country.
He added that the interest shown by bidders and the opening up of the generation sub-sector confirmed that vast opportunities abound in the power sector and that the Bureau and other relevant stakeholders were committed to making it very sustainable.
Okoh said the objectives of the pre-bid conference were to address possible questions from the prequalified bidders with regards to the transactions and provide clarity on some issues in the Transaction Documents as may be necessary.
He noted that the forum would also highlight the potential in the sector and provide a platform for potential investors to understand the process for the privatisation of the NIPP plants as well as to enable them to adequately prepare their bid documents.
…such litigations were baseless and frivolous as the Bureau and the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) were empowered by the bids’ provisions under NIPPs transaction to terminate bids that violated the ground rules.
Okoh continued: “this event is a continuation of the Federal Government’s reform of the power sector with the aim of ensuring that assets within the sector are fully utilized and transformed into world class facilities, through the injection of private sector capital and deployment of more efficient and technical capacity.”
He allayed the fears of potential buyers of some of the plants which have litigation issues, saying that such litigations are baseless and frivolous as the Bureau and the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) were empowered by the bids’ provisions under NIPPs transaction to terminate bids that violated the ground rules.
The event attracted other critical stakeholders including the National Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC), and Nigerian Bulk Trading Company (NBET).
Recall that the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) in April 2021 approved the adoption of a fast-track strategy for the privatisation of the five NIPP plants:
Council also approved the engagement of CPCS Consortium as the Technical Adviser (TA) for the 100% sale of the plants, in line with the policy of divesting government shares from thermal generating plants.
Subsequently, the Bureau advertised in three national dailies and an online news platform on May 6, 2021, calling for Expressions of Interest (EOIs) from prospective investors for the sale of the power plants, with a submission deadline on June 30th.
At the expiration of the deadline, 36 EOIs were duly submitted by prospective investors and the closure for the receipt of the EOIs was witnessed by the representatives of the Department of State Security Services (DSS), Anti-corruption and Transparency/Servicom Unit (ACTSU) of the Bureau.
