FG to revoke licenses of underperforming DisCos, GenCos – Minister

The Federal Government has vowed to licences of under-performing electricity distribution and generation companies in Nigeria.

The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu disclosed this at the opening ceremony of the three-day inaugural Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI), Market Participants and Stakeholders Roundtable, NMPSR, in Abuja on Monday.

He lamented that 10 years after the privatization of the power sector in November 2013, operators have failed to achieve their set objectives.

Adelabu insisted that for operators that have not met expectations, their licenses will be revoked.

He said, “I mentioned that ten years later, the licenses are expiring, and it’s time for renewal. Renewal is not automatic. Any privatised companies that have not lived up to expectations will not have their licence renewed. We have to know whether you have complied with the terms and conditions of the licence you have been given.

“I mentioned in my speech that most countries do not privatise their electricity supply value chain from generation to transmission to distribution. But bad enough, we have done this; how can we work around the current status to achieve our priorities and objectives?

“And I said it’s not a job for one person or a set of stakeholders. It’s a job for everybody. We all have a role to play.

“We must all come together and play our roles so that we come out strong and achieve success in the industry.

“We’ll look at the technical capacities of the GenCos and the DisCos. We will look at the financial capabilities of the DisCos. How much investment have you made since you got this licence?

“How much improvement have you made to the infrastructure? Which AT&C losses have you reduced based on the agreement when you were given the licence? These are the very serious conversations we need to have with the private sector operators at the distribution and the generating companies level.”

It would be recalled that in November 2013, the power sector was privatised, with six power generation plants and 11 electricity distribution companies.