The National Council on Privatisation and the Bureau of Public Enterprise have been ordered to suspend indefinitely the proposed concession of the 700 megawatts Station in Niger State, pending the conclusion of an investigation by its committee on power.
The order was handed down to the two agencies by the Senate on Wednesday when it was debating on motion sponsored by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Power, Gabriel Suswam who explained that it will be unacceptable to concession the power plant without ensuring accountability and proper management of unsettled external loans tied to the project.
The lawmakers led by Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, supported his stance. They point out the abysmal failure of the privatization of the electricity sector.
The Senate thereafter adopted two resolutions: one of them mandated the Committee on Power to investigate the circumstances under which the Zungeru Hydroelectric Power Plant is being concessioned as well as urged the National Council on Privatization and the Bureau of Public Enterprise to suspend indefinitely the proposed concession.
The Federal Government is inviting investors to bid for the concession of a 700 megawatts-capacity Zungeru hydropower plant in Niger State.
The government, through the Bureau of Public Enterprise, said it was looking for a competent concessionaire to operate, manage and maintain the hydropower plant to ensure it ran effectively for a period of three decades. (30 years).
Two stages are involved in bidding process – the qualification stage and the bid stage.
The agency also set 2pm, November 24, 2022, as the deadline for the Request for Qualification.
According to a document published by the BPE on its website, only shortlisted applicants will be invited to the second phase of the bidding.
The plant is expected to be of a reservoir at an elevation of 230 metres with a powerhouse containing four 175 megawatts turbine/generating units for a total rated output of 700MW.
The project is expected to be commissioned by the first quarter of 2023
