The Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) is struggling to operate effectively due to a huge N600 billion debts owed by the Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trading (NBET). This was revealed by the company’s Managing Director, Jennifer Adighije, in a statement issued in Abuja.
According to Adighije, the debt, along with poor gas supply and transmission challenges, has made it difficult for the company to deliver steady electricity. She said that although NDPHC has a generation capacity of about 2,000 megawatts (MW), much of it cannot be used because of problems moving the power through the national grid.
Despite these setbacks, the company has been able to bring back five turbine units at the Calabar, Omotosho, Sapele, and Ihovbor power stations, contributing 625MW to the national grid.
Adighije explained that NDPHC’s power stations are often unable to generate electricity due to limited gas supply and transmission constraints. In many cases, even when electricity is generated, the national grid lacks the capacity to transmit it to homes and businesses.
She also pointed out that power generation depends on demand, but most distribution companies (DisCos) are not taking enough power, leaving the company with stranded capacity. NDPHC plants are also ordered to start or shut down at short notice by the System Operator, without any compensation, which adds to the wear and tear of the equipment.
Despite the difficulties, NDPHC has invested over N500 billion in infrastructure like transformers, substations, and transmission lines since the start of the National Integrated Power Projects (NIPP).
To tackle the problem of stranded power, NDPHC is now looking to sell electricity directly to large consumers. Adighije said the company is working on deals with eligible customers, including companies like Zenith Point, to supply up to 100MW of power each.
These deals are expected to be completed by 2025 and are aimed at helping NDPHC recover some of its losses and improve its cash flow. This move follows a July 2023 directive from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) that allows generation companies to sell directly to large customers outside the DisCo network.
Adighije said this strategy would help unlock the company’s trapped capacity and reduce its financial troubles. She assured that steps were also being taken to resolve metering issues at the Alaoji Power Plant, which is expected to come back online before the end of the year.
NDPHC remains one of the biggest power producers in Nigeria, but without urgent reforms and payments, much of its capacity will remain unused.
