Economy
FG has not Cancelled Power Purchase Agreements—Adeosun
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, has reacted to media reports claiming that the Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) signed by Federal Government with Project Developers in the power sector has been cancelled.
In a statement issued on Friday, the Minister said there was no iota of truth in the “bogus and unverified report.”
She explained that the role of negotiating with Project Developers and signing PPAs is domiciled with the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading (NBET) Plc and not the Federal Ministry of Finance.
“However, as the primary obligor of all forms of guarantees issued by all governments of the federation and their agencies, Federal Ministry of Finance through the Debt Management Office (DMO), must estimate the size of obligation that it is willing and able to accommodate in relation to the power sector.
“Furthermore, the Ministry is required to evaluate the country’s repayment capacity for current and contingent debt obligations as part of its Debt Sustainability Analysis (DSA), which is a key requirement for sound Public Debt Management practice.
“These liabilities have wider implications for the country’s debt and overall fiscal position in the medium to long-term,” the Minister explained further.
She further said, “Guarantees constitute a contingent liability and it is important to note that increasingly, for a number Power Purchase Agreements being signed in the Power Sector, in recent times, Federal Government is required to provide and sign a Partial Risk Guarantee (PRG) as well as a Put Call Option Agreement (PCOA).
“Guarantees by themselves do not constitute a risk. However, where guarantees are expected to be the primary means of ensuring ongoing contractual payments, they constitute a huge risk to the fiscal sustainability of the Federal Government.
“Guarantees are issued to provide extra comfort between contractual counterparties and should be issued based on the existence of steady/regular cash flows that underpin the contracts.
“Besides, a sovereign default has the consequent effect of increasing Nigeria’s credit risk and cost of borrowing in the International Capital Markets (ICM). It would be recalled that the Federal Government had recently and successfully raised Eurobonds of $5 billion in the ICM at favourable yields. These proceeds are being invested in the much needed infrastructure (Road, Rail, Power, etc). A default would therefore, have a detrimental effect on the development of the country.”
“In view of the above, Federal Ministry of Finance initiated an inter-ministerial meeting with all representatives from DMO, Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing, the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc and Bureau of Public Enterprises where the following decisions were reached with regards to the Independent Power Plants requiring PCOAs which was communicated to NBET on the 26th of July, 2017:
“i. The Federal Government will bear Foreign exchange rate risk and make termination payments in “ii. NBET is required to work within a contingent liability exposure limit of US$10 billion (US$5bn for PCOAs and US$5bn for NIPPs). It is expected that NBET would negotiate with project developers to ensure that Nigerians are getting the best quality of service within costs aligned to global standards. “The Federal Ministry of Finance is focused on achieving market sustainability in the long-term and requires that NBET has a comprehensive plan to manage these exposures to avoid a drawdown on the PRGs.
“It is imperative that Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing; Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC); and NBET must ensure that meters are rolled out to improve billing accuracy and also improve DISCO collections in order to increase cash flows to the power sector value chain.
“If the market cannot pay for power distributed, the situation will remain unsustainable. It is unhealthy for Federal Government to build an entire sector based on Sovereign Guarantees without addressing challenges inhibiting financial sustainability across the value chain.
“It should also be noted that no Multilateral Agency would continue to issue guarantees where it is clear that the requirement for steady cash flows within the sector to meet regular payment obligations does not exist.”
The Minister also pointed out that Federal Government is willing to accept investments that are accretive in value to the Nigerian economy on a holistic basis.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Despite signs that Nigeria’s headline inflation is easing, rising food prices continue to threaten the country’s inflation outlook, the chief executive of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Mr Muda Yusuf, has warned.
He noted that structural inflationary pressures in the real economy remain pronounced despite improving macroeconomic stability.
In a policy brief released following the inflation report, he noted that headline inflation eased marginally, while month-on-month change moderated from 1.75 per cent to 1.66 per cent, indicating that headline inflation has largely plateaued.
According to him, the dominant concern in the latest inflation report is the renewed acceleration in food inflation.
This growth, he said, suggested that food prices have resumed an upward trajectory after a brief period of moderation.
Warning that a renewed increase in food inflation has significant economic and social implications, he stressed that food inflation remained the biggest driver of Nigeria’s cost-of-living crisis, stressing that rising food prices continue to erode household purchasing power, worsen poverty and food insecurity while weakening the inclusiveness of the current reform programme.
He maintained that sustained moderation in food prices is critical to improving citizens’ welfare and strengthening public confidence in the ongoing economic reforms.
Acknowledging the easing of core inflation as encouraging, he drew attention to the persistence of urban inflation.
At 16.08 per cent, urban inflation exceeded the national headline inflation rate of 15.91 per cent, while month-on-month urban inflation increased from 1.99 per cent to 2.13 per cent.
According to Mr Yusuf, the figures indicated that inflationary pressures remained particularly intense across urban centres.
He attributed the rising urban inflation partly to increasing population displacement from rural communities affected by insecurity, expressing worry that as more households migrate to urban areas, demand for housing, transportation, utilities and other essential services would increase, adding to inflationary pressures and creating additional urbanisation challenges.
Addressing insecurity in farming communities, he said, was important not only for protecting lives and property and boosting agricultural output but also for easing cost pressures in urban centres, adding that the June CPI data reinforced the view that Nigeria’s inflation challenge is predominantly structural rather than monetary.
On the monetary policy outlook, he said the data do not justify further monetary tightening, arguing that headline inflation has largely stabilised.
The CPPE chief expected the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to retain the current monetary policy rate at its next meeting, adding that the priority is for monetary and fiscal authorities to work together to accelerate structural reforms to expand food supply, improve logistics, reduce energy and production costs, lower debt service costs, as well as strengthen domestic value chains.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Additional shares of Sterling Financial Holdings Company Plc have been listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
The new equities were added to the company’s existing stocks on Customs Street on Thursday, July 16, 2026, a notice from the bourse confirmed.
Business Post reports the total new ordinary shares of Sterling Holdings listed yesterday were 13,812,239,000 units.
They were from the offer for subscription of 12,581,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each sold for N7.00 per share, which was oversubscribed by investors.
The financial institution brought the new shares to the stock exchange to increase its total issued and fully paid-up shares to 65,929,251,414 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each from 52,117,012,414 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.
“Trading licence holders are hereby notified that an additional 13,812,239,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each of Sterling Financial Holdings Company Plc were on Thursday, July 16, 2026, listed on the daily official list of Nigerian Exchange Limited.
“The additional shares listed on NGX arose from the company’s offer for subscription of 12,581,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N7.00 per share.
“With the listing of the additional shares, the total issued and fully paid-up shares of Sterling Financial Holdings Company Plc have now increased from 52,117,012,414 to 65,929,251,414 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each,” the notice read.
By Adedapo Adesanya
President Bola Tinubu has signed a Presidential Executive Order on Virtual Assets Coordination, establishing a new framework to coordinate the regulation of virtual assets across government agencies as Nigeria seeks to curb fraud while supporting innovation in the digital economy.
The Executive Order, which takes immediate effect, creates a Virtual Asset Council chaired by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to harmonise oversight of cryptocurrencies, tokenised assets, stablecoins, and other digital assets without creating a new regulator.
As part of the new framework, the CBN will establish a regulatory sandbox that will allow eligible firms to test virtual asset products, blockchain solutions, and related services under regulatory supervision before they are introduced to the wider market.
The development was disclosed in a statement issued on Friday by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga.
According to the presidency, the Executive Order responds to the growing complexity of virtual assets, which increasingly cut across the traditional boundaries of currencies, securities, commodities, and payment systems.
The fragmented regulatory environment has left gaps that have exposed Nigeria to money laundering, terrorism financing, cybersecurity and data privacy risks, fraud, and revenue losses.
The government said some unregistered operators have exploited these regulatory gaps to defraud unsuspecting Nigerians, resulting in significant financial losses.
“The Order is designed to close these gaps through supervisory coordination, without introducing new layers of regulation or displacing the mandates of existing agencies,” the statement read.
Under the new framework, the Virtual Asset Council will be chaired by the CBN, with the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) serving as vice chairs. Other members include the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) and the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).
The Council will provide policy direction, improve cooperation among participating agencies, and work with the Attorney General of the Federation to develop a harmonised legal and institutional framework for the sector.
The Executive Order also establishes a Virtual Asset Office, which will serve as the Council’s operational arm. The office will be domiciled at the CBN and will coordinate information sharing, applications, and reporting among the participating agencies through a shared supervisory technology platform.
The presidency stressed that the Executive Order does not create a new regulator or transfer statutory powers from existing agencies, clarifying that instead, each institution will continue to exercise its existing mandate while working within a coordinated framework.
Under the arrangement, registration of virtual asset businesses will depend on the nature of the service being offered.
Activities classified as securities will continue to be regulated by the SEC, while payment, settlement, custody, and other services involving non-security virtual assets will fall under the CBN.
Where there is uncertainty over regulatory jurisdiction, the Virtual Asset Council will determine the appropriate supervising agency.
“The sandbox will provide a controlled environment in which eligible operators can test and operate virtual asset products, services, and blockchain-based solutions under close supervision, enabling the participating agencies to assess the implications for monetary sovereignty, financial stability, market integrity, consumer protection, financial inclusion, and revenue administration before products reach the wider market,” the statement added.
According to the presidency, the sandbox will enable regulators to evaluate the implications of emerging products for financial stability, monetary sovereignty, consumer protection, financial inclusion, market integrity, and revenue administration.
The central bank is expected to announce further details of the sandbox.
