In a deft move to avert theat of imminent shutdown of power generation plants due to N4 trillion debt, a meeting has been scheduled between President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the leadership of the generation companies (GenCos), with a view to finding a common ground to settle the debt crisis.
Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, disclosed this via a statement issued by Bolaji Tunji, his Special Adviser, Strategic Communications and Media Relations on Sunday in Abuja. Acording to the Minister, the Federal Government is determined to urgently address the N4 trillion debt crippling Nigeria’s power generation sector.
The statement attributed the urgency to a high level talks between the Power Minister Adebayo Adelabu and Chairmen of Generating Companies of Nigeria (GenCos) in Abuja on Tuesday. The move it further explained aims to avert an imminent collapse of the power infrastructure in the country.
The statement quoted the Minister as assuring the GenCos executives that the government would prioritize immediate payment of a significant amount out of the N4 trillion debt while the balance would be defrayed through other debt instruments.
He said this would be proposed in a meeting being planned between President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and GenCos’ leadership. It said: “There is need to pay a substantial amount of the debt in cash. At the minimum, let us pay a substantial amount, then ask for debt instrument in promissory notes to pay the rest”.
He assured of the payment of the outstanding balance within six months through financial instruments such as promissory notes. “We recognise the urgency of this matter. The government is committed to resolving this debt to stabilize the sector and prevent further crisis, President Bola Tinubu would meet with GenCos leadership to fasttrack the process,” Adelabu said.
Chairman of Mainstream Energy Solutions who is also the Chairman of Association of Power Generating Companies (APGA), Col. Sani Bello, had earlier sounded the alarm over the sector’s dire state, citing the N4 trillion debt as a critical threat to operations
