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– NCP approves steps to Afam plant power sale
From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
The National Council on Privatisation (NCP), presided over by Vice President Kashim Shettima, on Thursday gave approval for the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) to proceed with engagements and execution of Performance Agreements relating to the sale of Afam Power Plc and Afam III Fast Power Limited to Transcorp Power Consortium.
This move aims to regularise outstanding conditions and operational goals critical for the plant’s post-acquisition commercial viability.
According to a statement issued by the media aide to the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, the landmark decision came during the NCP’s third meeting of the year, held at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, where BPE Director General Ayodeji Ariyo Gbeleyi presented the memo requesting execution of the Performance Agreements (PAs). These agreements, a standard requirement following acquisitions in Nigeria’s power sector, define the investor’s commitment to enhancing the plant’s operational capacity within stipulated timelines.
According to Gbeleyi, the Federal Government completed the sale process in November 2020, with privatisation proceeds of N53.9 billion fully collected. “While the asset has been fully handed to the core investor, Transcorp Power Consortium, the government also restructured the transaction this year,” he said. With the execution of the PAs, the BPE will also begin mandatory post-privatisation monitoring of the core investor’s performance obligations.
The council also reviewed significant achievements in 2025, notably the unbundling of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) into two new entities—the Nigerian Independent System Operator and the Transmission Service Provider.
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NCP Chairman and Vice President Kashim Shettima used the occasion to call for a fundamental transformation in Nigeria’s privatisation approach. “There is a need to shift from simply selling state-owned enterprises to asset optimisation designed to power the nation’s trillion-dollar economy ambition,” Shettima stated.
He added, “Our nation’s aspiration to build a trillion-dollar economy is a destination that demands discipline, vision, and absolute adherence to the compass produced by this Council. Without such a compass, our economic projections would amount to nothing more than an exercise in theory formation.”
Shettima envisions the NCP focusing on unlocking the value of Nigeria’s untapped assets—including underutilised land, dormant real estate, and intellectual property—and transforming these into engines of growth. “The necessity of this Council has never been in doubt,” he maintained. “We replace bureaucratic bottlenecks with commercial agility, relieve government of the costly burden of subsidising inefficient state-owned enterprises, and attract vital investment.”
To drive this agenda, the Vice President directed the Council to immediately explore modern privatisation models such as long-term concessions, asset-backed securitisation, and sales linked to strict performance benchmarks. He also underscored zero tolerance for ambiguities in transactions to prevent costly litigation and to “send a powerful signal of stability and seriousness to the international investment community.”
The meeting also featured contributions from key officials including Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister of the Economy Wale Edun, who praised the BPE’s commitment to best practices; Minister of Power Adebayo Adelabu; Minister of Budget and Economic Planning Atiku Bagudu; Attorney General Lateef Fagbemi; and Central Bank Governor Olayemi Cardoso.
