Nigeria’s power generation companies have said they are yet to receive any payment from the N3.3tn power sector debt settlement approved by President Bola Tinubu in April.
The companies, operating under the Association of Power Generation Companies (APGC), also rejected the Federal Government’s decision to reduce the outstanding debt from about N4tn to N3.3tn.
Speaking during a webinar organised by the APGC on Monday, the association’s Chief Executive Officer, Joy Ogaji, said most generation companies had not received any funds under the settlement arrangement.
According to her, the government’s debt figures have changed several times over the years.
“You know that this acceptance of the government is like a moving target. Earlier, the government said the debt was N2.3tn. About a month or two after, it increased to N2.8tn. The last one was N3.3tn before they appointed a new special adviser on power,” Ogaji said.
She stressed that despite the latest settlement figure, no payment had been made to the majority of generation companies.
“From that N3.3tn or N2.8tn, to date, we have not received a dime. Nothing has been received by the GenCos,” she added.
President Tinubu had approved a plan to settle longstanding electricity sector debts under the Presidential Power Sector Financial Reforms Programme.
Presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga announced on April 5 that N3.3tn had been agreed upon as a full and final settlement of legacy debts accumulated between February 2015 and March 2025 following a verification exercise.
The Federal Government also stated that implementation had begun, with 15 power plants signing settlement agreements worth N2.3tn. It further disclosed that N501bn had been raised to support the payments.
However, Ogaji maintained that no payments had reached most generation companies. She noted that the N500bn bond raised by the government was still being disbursed.
“The N500bn bond that they said they raised by December and January this year, as I speak to you, they’ve not even finished disbursing,” she said.
The APGC CEO also revealed that generation companies had not accepted the N3.3tn debt figure proposed by the government.
“We have not accepted N3.3tn because when we reconciled our debt to the gas suppliers, we owed them over N4tn,” she stated.
According to Ogaji, gas suppliers rejected any proposal to reduce the debts owed to them. She explained that the suppliers insisted on full payment and refused to concede any part of the outstanding amount.
She further disclosed that only five generation companies agreed to the conditions attached to the government’s bond programme. The companies are Geregu Power, Ibom Power, First Independent Power Limited, Niger Delta Power Holding Company, and Mabon Energy.
Ogaji said these were the only firms currently receiving payments because they accepted the settlement terms.
She added that the broader debt challenge remains unresolved, noting that liabilities in the sector have continued to increase.
“Nothing has been done about the N3.3tn or the N6.8tn, which has now ballooned to over N7tn and is still growing,” she said.
Earlier this year, the Federal Government announced measures aimed at reducing the sector’s debt burden through the Presidential Power Sector Debt Reduction Programme.
The Special Adviser to the President on Energy, Olu Verheijen, said five generation companies operating 14 power plants had signed settlement agreements with the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc following the issuance of a N501bn bond.
According to Verheijen, the negotiated settlement for the five companies was valued at N827.16bn and would be paid in four instalments.
The latest disagreement highlights ongoing concerns over liquidity challenges in Nigeria’s power sector, as generation companies continue to seek full settlement of outstanding debts while the government pursues a phased repayment strategy.
