Sale of power plants: FG evaluates investors, customers protest

Due diligence on the 16 pre-qualified investors shortlisted by the Federal Government’s Bureau of Public Enterprises for the purchase of the five power facilities under the National Integrated Power Project of the Niger Delta Power Holding Company has already begun.

On Monday, however, consumers of energy protested the planned sale of the power assets.

The House of Representatives’ directive to the BPE to prevent the sale of the power plants located in Calabar, Cross River State, Ihorbor, Edo State, Olorunsogbo, Ogun State, Omotosho, Ondo State, and Geregu, Kogi State is the background to the decision to sell the power plants.

Following a resolution of urgent public concern made on July 21 by Magaji Aliyu (APC, Jigawa), chairman of the House Committee on Power, the sales were halted.

Aliyu, who moved the motion, claimed that the three tiers of government owned the power assets, with the federal government owning 47% and the states and local governments owning the remaining 53%.

Without the approval of the other levels of government and others, he continued, the Federal Government was insistent about selling the assets to cover the budget deficit.