Oredola Adeola

The Nigerian Government has confirmed that the transfer of ownership of the Zungeru Hydroelectric Power Plant to Penstock Limited took place on January 23, 2024, following the settlement of the project’s commencement fee on January 5, 2024.

Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Communications (Office of the Vice President, made this known in a statement obtained by Advisors Reports on Tuesday.

According to Nkwocha, the deal was disclosed on Tuesday during the first meeting of the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) for the year 2024 at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

At the meeting, the NCP announced that the Concession Agreement was signed on December 13, 2023, by the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) and Penstock Limited.

It stated that following Council’s approval, the Concessionaire fulfilled its obligation by paying 50 per cent of the commencement fees on January 5, 2024.

Advisors Reports gathered that the Penstock Energy Ltd, is a subsidiary of Mainstream Energy Solution Ltd, the concessionaire of Kainji and Jebba Hydro Power Plants (HPP) with an installed capacity of 760MW and 578.4MW.

Penstock Energy Limited, financed the 700MW Zungeru hydropower plant, which is the second largest hydropower plant in Nigeria, deal by a staggering $1.3 billion loan from China.

Intriguingly, this new development comes alongside a significant financial agreement whereby the concessionaire must pay the Nigerian government $70 million per year over the next three decades in return for managing the complex.