CBN, NBET, others owe N190bn electricity bill

The Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) has disclosed that the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trading Company (NBET) are currently indebted to it to the tune of N190 billion.

Chiedu Ugbo, Managing Director of the Federal Government-owned power company made this known during a media roundtable held on Monday in Lagos.

“Huge indebtedness by the market to NDPHC runs into hundreds of billions, N190 billion as of May for unpaid invoices. NDPHC is also not paid for availability but only as dispatched thereby depriving NDPHC of hundreds of billions since 2015 when the Transitional Electricity Market was declared, and the government has so far been denied revenue as high as N3 trillion” he said.

He, however, disclosed that this development had not hampered the company’s commitment to the Light Up Nigeria Project.

READ ALSO:Nigeria has world’s largest electricity deficit – British envoy

Furthermore, Ugbo acknowledged that this development had made it difficult for the company to meet some of its obligations such as operational expenditures including stock of spares, payment to gas suppliers, and others.

On a separate note, Ugbo explained that the stake in 10 Integrated Power Plants (NIPPs) remains frozen due to the owners’ indecision about selling the business.

“The owners of the business have not come up with a decision to sell. We at the NDPHC are just caretakers.”

“We will act based on any decision taken by the owners of the business, which are the federal and the state governments,” he added.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now