Nigeria rules out privatisation of transmission company

The Federal Government has described as outright falsehood reports on the planned privatisation of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the federal government said there was no plan to sell or privatise the TCN and reaffirmed its commitment to an uninterrupted power supply in the country.

The clarification came at a time President Muhammadu Buhari declared the federal government’s readiness to sell national assets in a bid to raise capital to fund the budget deficits.

The Nigerian government privatized the power sector under former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration in 2013, leading to the establishment of the Generation (GenCos) and Distribution Companies (Discos).

The government also reports on the planned retrenchment of workers.

The statement read: “These reports are untrue and are only mere misinformation aimed at spreading panic in the power sector, which is making progress towards ensuring that Nigerians enjoy uninterrupted power supply.

“The Federal Government of Nigeria has no intent to sell or privatize the Transmission Company of Nigeria, and no one in the FGN has made a statement of intent to sell TCN.

READ ALSO: Discos, Gencos, TCN to compensate Nigerians for lack of power supply

“The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) is a centrepiece in the Federal Government of Nigeria’s efforts to rejuvenate the power sector. Therefore, the Ministry of Power working with key stakeholders is continuing to evaluate, assess and upgrade TCN to make it more efficient and transparent.

“As part of the repositioning of TCN, job opportunities are being created, as with the recently concluded ramp up of employment, contrary to claims that there is a plan for a mass disengagement of staff at TCN. The organization has also been carrying out sustained capacity building by training and retraining of staff across all cadre for efficiency and service delivery.

“Transmission is a vital segment of the electricity value chain that constantly needs significant investment. As is the best practice across the world, the government of Nigeria maintains the transmission segment of the power value chain even when other segments have been privatized. Currently, the federal government is investing and supporting efforts to make TCN a world-class transmission service provider.

“The federal government under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari focuses on upgrading, stabilizing and modernizing Nigeria’s power industry through various interventions, including the Nigeria-Siemens partnership under the Presidential Power Initiative (PPI).”

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