The Federal Government has said it will commit about N702bn through the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading to guarantee the payment of electricity generated and supplied by power generation and distribution companies.

This plan was contained in a communiqué issued by the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing on Friday.

The statement said the “recovery plan” was necessary in order to increase liquidity in the power sector towards increased generation of power in the country.

It read, “The Federal Government of Nigeria is committing up to N702bn to the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading to guarantee the payment of its obligations for electricity delivered to our homes, businesses, industries and government establishments.

“These plans alone will not solve all the problems of the power sector or produce overnight the electricity that has eluded us for decades. However, they are conceived within a package of measures to ensure that the electricity system continues on a steady trajectory of growth, better service delivery and a climate where investors who play by the rules set by the commission and deliver results that benefit the consuming public are compensated appropriately.

“The N702bn payment guarantee support to NBET will be effective from January 2017. From that date, the support will enable NBET to pay its obligations to Gencos, and through them to their gas suppliers, equipment suppliers, banks and other partners, while working with the Discos, government and the commission to improve the Discos’ payment performance from its current 24.9 per cent level, with 100 per cent payment as the target.”

Source; Punch

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