Economy
Investors Join Scatec Solar to Build 100mw Project In Jigawa
By Dipo Olowookere
Scatec Solar said it has signed a Joint Development Agreement (JDA) with Africa50, an African Infrastructure Fund sponsored by the African Development Bank (AfDB) and more than 20 African States and Norfund (the Norwegian Investment Fund for Development Countries), securing investment into the 100 MW (DC) Nova Scotia Power plant located in Dutse, Jigawa State.
The project has the potential to significantly contribute to the plan of the government to attract $2 billion of investments into the state and implement President Muhammadu Buhari’s plans to provide jobs and economic opportunities especially for the nation’s youth.
The signing ceremony of the JDA was held in the presence of Børge Brende, the visiting Norwegian Foreign Minister, Barrister Ibrahim Hassan Hadejia, Deputy Governor of Jigawa State, as well as officials from the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading among others.
“New local power generation capacity is a key element to attract sizeable investment into the State and region, especially into new industries such as light manufacturing and agricultural processing,” the Deputy Governor said.
“The formation of this consortium is a strong symbol of the Norwegian and Nigerian commitment to invest in clean energy in Nigeria. With the Government of Norway taking a direct investment role through Norfund, significant regional and Nigerian ownership through Africa50, and the track-record of Scatec Solar, this offers one of the most solid partnerships for solar PV projects globally,” said Executive Vice President Terje Pilskog who signed the JDA on behalf of Scatec Solar.
“I am pleased that Africa50 is already making its first investment, which fits in squarely with our priority to light up and power Africa,” said Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank (AfDB) and Chairman of Africa50’s Board of Directors. Africa50 has been created by African governments, including Nigeria, the African Development Bank and institutional investors to mobilize private sector for funding infrastructure projects in Africa. Alain Ebobisse, Africa50’s CEO noted: “Access to reliable energy is one of the most critical needs in Africa, including in Nigeria, where it is a government priority. I look forward to deepening the relationship with the authorities of Nigeria, one of our key shareholder countries, and to supporting more projects in this and other infrastructure sectors.”
Apart from the three equity investors, the American Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), Islamic Development Bank and the African Development Bank are expected to be senior debt providers for the project. International Finance institutions say the key to successful investment is the Nigerian state’s issue of project documents that provides necessary investor confidence and the formulation of a clear roadmap to sustainability in the energy sector.
With an estimated investment of USD 150 million, a production of 200,000 MWh of electricity per year and 120,000 tons of CO2 emissions avoided annually, the Nova Scotia solar plant will help Nigeria rapidly increase its generation capacity, provide economic opportunities, fight desertification caused by climate change, and contribute to fulfilling Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari’s commitments to develop renewable energy as part of the Paris Climate Change Agreement.
In July, the Nova Scotia project signed a 20-year PPA with Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading (NBET). Located on 200 hectares of land, the project has strong fundamentals with high solar resources and direct access to the transmission grid through a simple connection route. The consortium will continue to work with CDIL, a Canadian renewable energy development company focused on Africa, and BPS, a Nigerian strategic consulting, to move the project from “pipeline” and achieve financial close in 2017 and commercial operations in 2018.
Nigeria is Africa’s largest and the world’s 26th biggest economy. With Nigeria’s per capita electricity consumption at 155 kwh, one of the lowest in the world, there is a huge need to increase power production in order to expand and diversify the Nigerian economy.
By Adedapo Adesanya
UBN Property Plc further sank the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange in the red territory by 0.48 per cent on Wednesday, April 23.
The property investment company lost 7 Kobo of its share value to settle at N2.10 per unit compared with the preceding day’s price of N2.17 per unit.
As a result, the market capitalisation of the bourse went down by N9.19 billion to N1.908 trillion from N1.917 trillion and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) slumped by 105.70 points to 3,259.08 points from the previous session’s 3,274.78 points.
There was a 500.5 per cent rise in the volume of securities transacted in the midweek session to 1.05 million units from the 174,634 units traded in the previous trading day.
However, the value of transactions decreased by 9.1 per cent to N2.6 million from N2.86 million and the number of deals dropped by 31.3 per cent to 11 deals from 16 deals.
At the close of business, Impresit Bakolori Plc remained the most active stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 533.9 million units worth N520.9 million, trailed by Okitipupa Plc with 153.6 million units sold for N4.9 billion, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc with 71.2 million units valued at N24.2 million.
Okitipupa Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 153.6 million valued at N4.9 billion, followed by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with the sale of 14.8 million units for N572.0 million, and Impresit Bakolori Plc with a turnover of 533.9 million units worth N520.9 million.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Between April and June 2025, the federal government intends to sell bonds between N900 billion and N1.2 trillion to investors.
This information was revealed by the Debt Management Office (DMO) in its Bond Issuance Calendar for Q2 2025
The sales will take place once in a month, precisely on April 28, May 26, and June 23, according to the data released by the DMO.
It was stated that the debt office will offer the debt instrument in two maturities, with N300 billion and N400 billion offered for sale at each auction.
In April and May, the DMO will reopen the 19.30 per cent FGN APR 2029 and 19.89 per cent FGN MAY 2033 bonds, and in June, it will introduce the FGN JAN 2030 and FGN JAN 2032 and five and seven-year, respectively.
In April, the APR 2029 bond will have a remaining tenor of four years, while the MAY 2033 bond will have six years and one month left.
By May, those terms shorten to three years and eleven months, and six years, respectively. Both bonds retain their original coupon rates of 19.30 per cent and 19.89 per cent.
The DMO has also released details for its April auction. The Federal Government plans to raise N350bn through the reopening of the APR 2029 and MAY 2033 bonds.
According to the circular, N200bn will be offered in the APR 2029 and N150bn in the MAY 2033. The auction will be held on Monday, April 28, with settlement on Wednesday, April 30.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira marginally depleted against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Wednesday, April 23.
During the session, it lost 35 Kobo or 0.02 per cent against the greenback to sell for N1,603.51/$1 compared with the previous day’s value of N1,603.16/$1.
Also, in the same official FX market, the value of the local currency depreciated against the Pound Sterling yesterday by N17.31 to quote at N2,137.55/£1 versus Tuesday’s closing price of N2,120.24/£1 and tumbled against the Euro by N19.89 to close at N1,837.58/€1 compared with the preceding session’s N1,817.69/€1.
However, in the parallel market segment, the domestic currency appreciated against the Dollar during the trading day by N5 to trade at N1,605/$1 versus the previous day’s N1,610/$1.
The Nigerian Naira has been under pressure lately after a recent ease in concerns about the country’s FX reserves, which have been been dropping.
A look at the digital currency market showed that it was bearish at midweek due to profit-taking amid declining US Dollar index, which is largely tied to mixed signals out of the world’s largest economy.
Earlier this week, President Donald Trump said he had no intention to fire US Federal Reserve Chair, Mr Jerome Powell, and that a deal with China (which is facing tariffs as high as 245 per cent on some items) would significantly reduce some of its levies.
The mixed signals and frequent tone shift are worrying traders, however, who continue to monitor comments for further cues on positioning, with market analysts noting that trade frictions, geopolitical jitters, and regulatory issues continue to cast long shadows on assets like crypto.
Dogecoin (DOGE) dipped by 4.9 per cent to sell at $0.1730, Ripple (XRP) fell by 3.9 per cent to $2.17, Litecoin (LTC) declined by 2.3 per cent to $82.23, and Binance Coin (BNB) depreciated by 2.2 per cent to $604.59.
In addition, Cardano (ADA) slumped by 1.9 per cent to $0.6837, Solana (SOL) also lost 1.9 per cent to close at $148.13. Bitcoin (BTC) slid by 1.3 per cent to $92,479.80, and Ethereum (ETH) crashed by 1.1 per cent to $1,770.12, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.
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