Nigeria to Sell Off KAEDC over $130M Debt

The power sector regulator, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), has announced its plan to sell off a power distribution firm to repay the debt of USD 130 million.

This is following the commission’s decision to dissolve the Kaduna DISCO board over its failure to repay debt of N110 billion owed to the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc (NBET) and the Market Operator (MO).

Africa’s biggest economy, Nigeria, has a total of 11 power distribution companies, many of which are struggling to stay in business due to a lack of capital and sub-economic tariffs imposed by the power regulator NERC. However, the Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company (KAEDC) is one of 18 successor in Kaduna created after the privatization of Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) in 2013.

Meanwhile, the dissolved board were the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) and local lender Fidelity Bank, which took over in July 2022. Two years later, the regulator took to the sale of the power distribution firm, owing to offset the incurred debts of N110 billion.

NERC said it has appointed Hashidu, succeeding Yusuf Yahaya, who exited last week to oversee KAEDC, pending sale to the highest bidder.

With this development, Nigerians who utilize a fraction of the nation’s 12,500 megawatts of power generated are left to outsource for the alternatives, being private generators and or solar power installation.

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Mayowa Durosinmi

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M. Durosinmi is a West Africa Weekly investigative reporter covering Politics, Human Rights, Health, and Security in West Africa and the Sahel Region

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