The federal government says it is prepared to sell 216 non-core assets of the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN).
According to Adebayo Fagbemi, managing director of the Nigeria Electricity Liability Management Company (NELMCO), the assets include buildings, jetties, lands, golf course, and guest houses.
NELMCO is saddled with the responsibility of holding the non-core assets of the defunct PHCN, sell or dispose of for the purpose of financing the payment of debts or other related matters.
Speaking during a visit to the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) by the senate committee on power, led by Gabriel Suswam, Fagbemi said the assets will be sold in phases.
He said the agency has advertised the first phase of the non-core assets for sale, which will include the sale of 52 assets, while the second and third phases will include 106 and 58 assets respectively.
“The idea is that we do them in phases. You can’t put everything in the market. And the reason is that one of the key requirements in Procurement Act is that you offload at the time you have the best of value,” he said.
“Also, it is to ensure that you get the value as at the current period, for valuation is actually periodic. So the first phase of assets that we are bringing out for sale are 52 in number.
“There is a second batch that we are working on now of about 106. Then there will be the third batch of about 58. So when you add all these you get the total stock of assets.”
Ernest Mupwaya, managing director of AEDC, said his company was indebted to NELMCO in terms of rent payments totalling N40 million monthly since November 2013.
He said the AEDC is already communicating with NELMCO on how to settle the debts and acquire some of the non-core assets up for sale.
The AEDC building, one of the legacies of the defunct PHCN, is one of the assets under the management of NELMCO.
Suswam said since the AEDC occupies the building, it has the right of first refusal to bid for the property.
Source: The Cable
