CEC maintains plans for stake in Nigerian company
COPPERBELT Energy Corporation says it has not shelved plans to bid for a stake in a Nigerian state power company that is scheduled for privatisation.
Nigeria plans a multi-billion dollar privatisation of its power sector to improve efficiency and has since split Power Holding Company’s distribution into 11 different units valued at about US $100 million each and a consortia that CEC is part of have been shortlisted to buy at least two of the units.
“We haven’t put off plans to buy a stake in Nigeria’s power sector. The Nigerian government themselves had put back the process a few months ago but at the moment they are saying the bids are due this coming July… we have done our due diligence although we haven’t made the final decision yet but it is likely that we will bid for one or two projects in Nigeria,” said Michael Tarney, the managing director for corporate development at Copperbelt Energy Corporation (CEC).
The continent’s most populous nation of more than 140 million is Africa’s biggest oil and gas producer but is blighted by persistent electricity outages.
CEC last Friday partnered with the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria, to collaborate on the development, investment and operations of selected power assets in Africa.
Tarney said CEC’s relationship with Africa Finance Corporation should boost its chances of winning the bid for units lined up for privatisation in Nigeria’s power sector.
“Obviously, this relationship with AFC is going to be helpful because they are based in Nigeria and they are partly owned by the government so it is going to be helpful in raising funds,” he said.
“It will also assist in averting any political risks because they [AFC) understand those risks from the inside and they can help us turn things properly.”
AFC has partnered with CEC, Zambia’s largest distributor of power to mines in the financing and development of two new hydroelectric power stations worth over US $1 billion in Zambia.
The deal is for the development of the Kabompo Gorge Hydro Power Project in North-Western Province at a cost of US$150 million and the Luapula Hydro Schemes in Luapula Province at a cost of US$1 billion.
The two projects are expected to have a total capacity of more than 800 megawatts.
