AMCON to auction non viable IBEDC to new investors
Sopuruchi Onwuka
The Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) has declared intention to auction off the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) to a new set of investor to make its operations more viable.
AMCON had in January 2022 taken the management IBEDC due to insolvency, stressing that issues affecting the company have defied resolution
Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Gbenga Alade, told media executives in Lagos that the power sector remains a critical case stalling economic development of the country, adding that no economy would develop without a stable power supply.
Takeover of IBDC followed a September 2021 court judgment that granted preservative orders in favour of AMCON, being the receiver/manager of Integrated Energy Distribution and Marketing Limited, the operators of IBEDC.
Alade stated that AMCON has no option left than to sell IBEDC to investors with adequate capital to fund its operations.
“In the power sector, we have Ibadan DisCo, which is under AMCON. We’ve tried as much as possible to get that resolved. And we’re in the process. We are yet to conclude the sale, but we are making very good headway in resolving Ibadan DisCo,” he said.
Alade expressed optimism that the IBEDC would be profitable if sold, saying it covers different states, including Ogun industrial areas.
“I believe that Ibadan Disco is the largest disco that we have because it goes across so many states like Ogun, including all the industrial areas of Ogun State. We believe that it can be made more efficient if sold to people with deep pockets who can invest, not people who just buy and not invest; they don’t have money to invest.
“With people who have deep pockets to invest in making that company more efficient and more effective, it will go a long way to helping the power sector,” he noted.
Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, had in April ordered the sale of DisCos that have been taken over by banks and AMCON from original operators.
Currently, four DisCos are under the management of banks and AMCON following acquisition loan defaults. They include the IBEDC, the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company, the Benin, Kaduna, and Kano DisCos.
To bolster the power sector, the AMCON boss noted that the corporation has completed a power project in Kaduna State.
“We also looked at the Kaduna power project as well, which has been abandoned for a few years. By God’s grace, we were able to sign an MoU with the project people. Work has already started on that project as well,” he maintained.
