thisday0518

MONDAY MAY 18, 2015 • THISDAY 9
NEWS
Power: Nigeria’s Bulk Trader Concludes
PPA Negotiations on 10 NIPP Gencos
Pioneering PPAs on coal, solar power generation ready soon
Chineme Okafor in Abuja
Nigeria’s bulk electricity
procuring entity, the Nigerian
Bulk Electricity Trading
Company Plc (NBET) at the
weekend disclosed that it had
concluded all negotiations
required for the successful
signing of Power Purchase
Agreements (PPAs) with the
10 thermal generation companies
of the National Integrated Power
Projects (NIPP).
Damilola Oyedele in Abuja
The Trade Union Congress
(TUC) has urged the
incoming administration of
Gen. Muhammadu Buhari to
drastically reduce the high cost
of governance in Nigeria.
It particularly harped on the
need to cut down on political
appointments, adding that
the current situation where
lawmakers fix their own
salaries and allowances must be
discouraged and discontinued.
The congress also frowned
at the way and manner public
office holders pay themselves
severance benefits running
into billions of naira without
addressing the legitimate
concerns of the workers on the
issue of pension and gratuity.
Rising from a meeting
of its National Executive
Council (NEC), the TUC in
a communique signed by its
President, Bobboi Kaigama
and, Secretary General, Musa
Lawal called for a review of
the salaries and allowances of
workers.
NBET by this development
has indicated its willingness
to enter into a bulk power
purchasing agreement with
the 10 electricity generation
companies which were built by
the Niger Delta Power Holding
Company Limited (NDPHC)
under the NIPP scheme, but
now slated for privatisation.
When consummated, the 10
NIPP plants will be able to sell
electricity generated by them
to NBET for onward resale to
APC Disowns Fake
Ministerial List in Circulation
Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja
The All Progressives Congress
(APC) has described as a fiction,
the ministerial lists currently being
circulated, especially on the social
media.
The party warned against
statements attributing certain
actions to the president-elect,
General Muhammadu Buhari,
urging members of the public to
disregard these lists and wait for
the authentic list which would
be communicated through the
appropriate channels.
It appealed to the media to
clarify with the authentic officials
of the party and the Buhari
Campaign Organisation any issue
having to do with the actions
of the president-elect in order
to avoid presenting falsehood
as facts.
In a statement issued yesterday
by its National Publicity Secretary,
Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the
party said the appeal became
necessary following recent media
reports on the actions which the
president-elect would purportedly
embark upon once he is sworn
into office.
‘’Various people have been
quoted in the media on what
the president-elect will do or will
not do once he assumes office.
The truth is that these people do
not speak for the presidentelect,
hence the need for the
media to clarify such issues
with the Chairman of the
party, its National Publicity
Secretary or the spokesman
of the Buhari Campaign
Organisation. These officials
are always available to clarify
issues,’’ it said.
The APC said the ongoing
transition was a delicate
period that fifth columnists
could capitalise on to cause
disaffection or overheat the polity,
hence the need for all stakeholders
to be extra-cautious and to put
the national interest above all
other interests.
‘’Nigerians should disregard
these lists and await the authentic
list which will be communicated
through the appropriate channels
at the right time,’’ it said.
Reduce High Cost of
Governance, TUC Urges
Buhari
“It noted with serious
concern that the minimum wage
of N18, 000 which is less than
$90 has not been implemented
in some states. In particular, the
congress condemns all the state
governments owing workers
salaries, as it is unhealthy for
the nation,” it read.
“The congress-in-session calls
on the incoming government
to restore payment of gratuity
along with pension,” TUC
added.
It also lamented the sustained
fuel scarcity, which has brought
untold hardship to Nigerians,
with attendant negative impact
on all components of national
economy.
TUC appealed to the
government to immediately
call stakeholders meeting to
address the controversies with
the marketers with a view to
urgently resolving the demand
and supply deficit. “...while
concrete steps should be taken on
the issue of local refining to put a
stop to the issue of importation of
petroleum products and payment
of subsidy.”
electricity distribution companies
in the country.
The PPA will confer on
both parties service rights and
obligations that include timely
payments for and power signed
for.
Also, the bulk trader stated
at the last Annual General
Meeting (AGM) of its board
in Abuja, that it is about to
close out negotiations on the
multi-layered Zuma Energy coal
power project as well as four
solar power projects which it
will soon send to the industry
regulator, the Nigerian Electricity
Regulatory Commission (NERC)
for vetting and approval.
A power purchase agreement
represents the vital contract
for any independent power
generation project, especially
in emerging electricity markets
like Nigeria’s, to consider in
proceeding with such projects.
It governs the sale and
purchase of power between a
producer and an off-taker or
buyer and helps the promoter
draw down on investment funds
for its project.
The Managing Director of
NBET, Rumundaka Wonodi,
told journalists shortly after
the AGM which was chaired
by the board chairperson and
Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi
Okonjo-Iweala, that the company
had gone on with negotiations
on these PPAs, especially for
what they represent to the sector.
He said: “We are working on
so many PPAs, we are just about
to close out the PPA on Zuma
coal power and send it off to
the regulator for approval. We
have about four solar PPAs that
we have just gone through in
the last round and those ones
could be initial depending on
how they react to that version.
“We have a couple of gas-fired
plant; Century, Omar Power,
Proton Energy, Exxon and quite
a couple of projects that are close
to initialing and close out.
“The bulk trader has
also PPAs with River State
Independent Power Plant and
has concluded the discussions
for the NIPP PPAs,” Wonodi
added.
He further said: “Currently,
NBET has fully negotiated
PPAs for four other gas IPPs
and now has PPA templates
for coal and solar powered
generation projects. These
PPAs need to undergo
regulatory review prior to
their execution.”
On what this means to
the sector, Wonodi explained
that when fully executed and
the projects are on stream, it
helps the bulk trader procure
more capacity in the pool of
REDAN Wants FG to Redeem N24.5bn
Guarantee on Housing Fund
James Emejo in Abujai
President, Real Estate Developers
Association of Nigeria (REDAN),
Mr. Ugo Chime, has challenged
the federal government to redeem
its guarantee on the Series 3 Bond
which is expected to mature on
May 24, 2015 with obligation
to pay N24.564 billion to Note
holders.
He said the buck between
government and the Federal
Mortgage Bank of Nigeria
(FMBN) at this stage would
not augur well for the country.
Speaking with THISDAY in
Abuja, he said given that FGN
Guarantee for the Mortgage-
Backed Bond is irrevocable and
un-conditional failure to redeem
it would cause the Nigerian bond
market and FGN damage to their
reputation.
Former President Olusegun
Obasanjo had initiated the muchcelebrated
federal government’s
N100billion mortgage-backed
bond which aimed to ensure
success of the sale of federal
government’s non-essential
residential houses in the Federal
Capital Territory to public servants
under the monetization policy
of that administration.
The five-year bond was
initiated in 2007 to ensure success
of the sale of federal government’s
non-essential residential houses
in the Federal Capital Territory
(FCT) to public servants.
FMBN and its issuing house
sold the first tranche of N26 billion
in 2007.
Impressed with the outcome,
Messrs FMBN SPV Issuer Limited
in 2012 issued another N6billion
notes by way of private placement
to qualified institutional investors.
The Series 2 Fixed Rate Notes
issued under the N100billion
Residential Mortgage Backed
Securities Programme which
is sponsored by FMBN, is 100
percent guaranteed by the federal
government.
An application will be made
to list the Series 2 Notes on the
Nigerian Stock Exchange.
However, the Series 3 Bond
will be maturing on May 24
with obligation on the federal
government to pay a sum
N24.564billion to note holders.
It’s failure to so do at maturity
will lead to the call of federal
goverment guarantee that backed
the transaction, an action which
could spell doom for the country
in local and offshore financial
circles.
Already, Coordinating Minister
for the Economy and Minister of
Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala
has reportedly directed FMBN
to sell off its assets to redeem
the guarantee.
But Chime argued that the
government should get its acts
together by ensuring it stands
up to this challenge and also go
further to inject more funds into
the FMBN and even restructure
it if deemed fit.
electricity available to it to sell
to distribution companies it has
signed vesting contracts with.
Wonodi in his assessment of
the current market situation with
regards to commencement of the
Transitional Electricity Market
(TEM), said: “The transitional
electricity market has begun
and that means that we are
beginning to receive payments
from distribution companies
from power supplied and
we are making payments
to the generation companies.
Trading has fully begun.
“We believe compliance
should be full for the month
of March, the supplementary
order came late and by
the time it came, so many
distribution companies were not
clear on that and we understand
that three made payments to
the market operator and bulk
trader.”
THANKING GOD
Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole; and his wife, Lara, carrying bread and wine for the Holy Communion at a thanksgiving Mass held
at the Immaculate Conception Cathedral, Auchi...yesterday
He said: “On this bond
issue, we need to look at some
aspects. Where is the money?
Was it injected into the NHF?
This money should have been
used as seed fund to assist the
Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria
(FMBN) to make houses more
affordable.
“I don’t think that at a time
when the government should
be thinking of beefing up the
capital base of FMBN it should
be asking the bank to sell off its
assets. It is gross dereliction of
duty to the masses. This entire
controversy is a distraction at
this moment.
He said: “The federal
government should pay the
money that is due in a few days
as this date has not come to them
as a surprise. There are no assets
for the FMBN to sell off to be
able to meet the deadline, even
if there were how many days
will it take to do so and meet
up with the deadline?”