The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), has confirmed the repossession taking of operational control by an Interim Board of the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC), at its Headquarters in Benin, Edo State.
In a statement, the Bureau said this was done with the support of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), and the Bureau, while also monitoring the events at the BEDC.
The statement also reads: “The Interim Board already had financial control of the entity and the usage of non-state actors by the former Board and Managing Director to forcefully disrupt the affairs of the entity was unfortunate.
“The actions if left unchecked risked plunging the citizens of Delta, Edo, Ekiti and Ondo (under the BEDC franchise) into darkness.”
Recall that Vigeo Holding having defaulted on their loan facilities and having collateralized their controlling shares had lost ownership in the entity.
The Bureau and NERC will work with the Ministry of Power and relevant law enforcement agencies to ensure no disruptions to service occur and that the interim Board and Management are allowed to proceed with their work unimpeded.
To this effect, BPE and NERC announced a restructuring action on July 5th, for the Kano, Kaduna, Benin and Ibadan DiSCO franchises with Fidelity Bank stepping in to the Board and the appointment of an interim Management by BPE and NERC to stabilize the entities and avert any operational issues arising.
The statement continues: “The entities are to be transitioned from the Bank’s control to more financially and technically competent private investors under a structured process being monitored by the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) (via the Bureau) and the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“While the restructuring action in Kano, Kaduna and Ibadan took place without issue, the Benin DiSCO restructuring had faced disruptions by the investors that were exited.”
The Bureau also commended the professionalism and actions of the relevant security agencies that supported the operational takeover of the HQ facility in Benin, and the reinstatement of operational control of the HQ to the recognized interim Board and Management.
Aside from monitoring the DisCo, the Bureau and NERC said they will work with the Ministry of Power and relevant law enforcement agencies to ensure no disruptions to service occur and that the interim Board and Management are allowed to proceed with their work unimpeded.
