Economy
Sahara Power Invests $200m in Egbin Power Plant to Generate 1,100MW
By Dipo Olowookere
Not less than $200 million has been invested in the Egbin Thermal Power Plant in Lagos by Sahara Power Group to increase its generating capacity to its present level.
Managing Director of Sahara Power Group, Mr Kola Adesina, speaking at an event organised by the firm in Lagos, stated that when the Egbin power plant was acquired by Sahara Power, it was generating 400MW of electricity. But with the huge investment made by his company, the plant now generates 1,100 MW, indicating that capacity has been more than doubled.
Mr Adesina said though the privatisation of the sector has not been smooth, there was room for improvement as long as stakeholders agree to work together.
“The privatization occurred in 2013 has not been a smooth one. We successor companies have had to embark on a long, protracted curve of learning to fully appreciate the complexity and the magnitude of the behemoth sector we now captain.
“Like young adolescents we have been compelled to grow and mature rapidly to rise up to the burden of responsibility placed on us,” he said at the Sahara Power Roundtable.
Speaking on why the forum was organised, the Sahara Power chief said the gathering was to create a platform to bring every leading actor across the value chain together on one plenary for the benefit of journalists and the consumer.
“Through discourse and constructive conversation, we hope to examine the current state of the power sector in Nigeria and how both the intrinsic and extrinsic are combining, evolving and reacting against each other to shape the future,” he disclosed.
Speaking on how policy can further drive the sector, Mr Adesina submitted that, “There is need to constantly do a systemic revaluation of every policy that is churned out.
“I want to recommend to government and policy makers that any action being taken, every stakeholder, the relevant public that will be affected by the policy must assess the degree to which those policies will affect them.
“While it is easier for economists to speak to the theory of pricing from the standpoint of cost, revenue and profit, affordability is another issue some are not paying attention to.
“We all are aware that there are citizens in Nigeria who are not employed and/or incapable of paying the appropriate tariff, it invariably behoves on the government to step in and cover the gap so that the shortfall currently impeding on the success of the sector can be erased.
“The social contract of government is to ensure everybody lives a good life. So for everybody to live well there is a need for everyone to be electrified.”
He said further that, “Every Nigerian deserves to have electricity, it is a right. The value chain equally has a right to be paid cost reflective tariff. If the revenue of every member of the value chain is not guaranteed, there cannot be guarantee of supply of commodity in question.”
At the forum, it was concluded that despite the challenges impeding its development, Nigeria’s energy sector still holds enormous potentials to deliver the desired expectations and further stimulate socio-economic growth if stakeholders deepen their collaboration and commitment to develop the sector.
The discourse had two panel sessions where the panellists including Managing Director of Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), U. G Mohammed; Lagos State Commissioner for Ministry of Energy & Mineral Resources, Mr. Olawale Oluwo; President/founder, Consumer Advocacy Foundation of Nigeria, Mrs Sola Salako and Head, Procurement, Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc. (NBET), Mr Eugene Edeoga, examined the plethora of issues affecting players in the value chain and the relationship with consumers.
Managing Director/Publisher of Business Day, Mr Frank Aigbogun, during the second panel session, noted that political parties and aspirants could gain support of electorates on the basis of promise to improve power supply, while the media plays critical role in shaping the opinion of consumers.
The MD of TCN further explained the series of ongoing projects being carried out by TCN as part of efforts to boot transmission. He also noted that manpower development was identified as one of the ways to achieve sustainability in the subsector.
At the high-powered forum where stakeholders including government, policymakers, industry operators across the sub-sector as well as representatives of Consumer Advocacy groups, who gathered to critically explore issues within energy sector with a view to proffering solutions.
An affiliate of Sahara Group, a leading international energy conglomerate, the Sahara Power Group is one the largest private power businesses in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Its operating entities include, First Independent Power Limits, FIPL; Egbin Power Plc, sub-Saharan Africa’s largest privately owned thermal power generation plant and Ikeja Electric Plc, Nigeria’s leading Electricity Distribution Company.
By Dipo Olowookere
The trio of Wema Bank, FBN Holdings, and Universal Insurance topped the activity chart of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited last week with a turnover of 1.679 billion shares worth N20.838 billion transacted in 4,922 deals, contributing 35.74 per cent and 24.50 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
Data from Customs Street showed that in the five-day trading week, investors bought and sold 4.698 billion stocks valued at N85.043 billion in 72,562 deals versus the 2.618 billion stocks sold for N69.742 billion in 47,953 deals in the preceding week.
The financial services industry attracted the attention of the market participants with 3.470 billion equities worth N40.791 billion traded in 34,364 deals, contributing 73.86 per cent and 47.97 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
The services sector followed with 407.032 million shares worth N2.226 billion in 4,996 deals, and the ICT space transacted 237.680 million stocks valued at N3.628 billion in 5,280 deals.
Business Post reports that 51 shares appreciated in the week versus 82 shares in the previous week, 39 equities depreciated compared with 18 equities a week earlier, and 62 stocks closed flat versus 52 stocks in the preceding week.
Multiverse was the best-performing stock with a a price appreciation of 53.42 per cent to N12.35, Honeywell Flour gained 31.67 per cent to close at N10.02, DAAR Communication expanded by 25.71 per cent to 88 Kobo, MTN Nigeria leapt by 21.00 per cent to N242.00, and NCR Nigeria soared by 20.66 per cent to N7.30.
On the flip side, Sunu Assurances was the worst-performing stock after it went down by 36.52 per cent to N7.30, Caverton shed 15.00 per cent to N2.38, Consolidated Hallmark slumped by 15.00 per cent to N3.40, RT Briscoe slipped by 14.33 per cent to N2.57, and Jaiz Bank depreciated by 10.77 per cent to N2.90.
At the close of business, the All-Share Index (ASI) and the market capitalisation gained 1.80 per cent to close the week at 105,451.06 points and N64.303 trillion, respectively.
Also, all other indices closed higher apart from the insurance, AFR Bank Value, AFR Div Yield, MERI Value, consumer goods, energy, and industrial goods, which depreciated by 6.91 per cent, 0.08 per cent, 1.11 per cent, 0.17 per cent, 0.34 per cent, 0.34 per cent and 0.26 per cent, respectively, as the ASeM closed flat.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Owners of companies operating in Lagos State have been reminded of the statutory filing of their annual tax returns for the 2024 financial year on or before Friday, January 31, 2025.
This reminder was issued by the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service (LIRS) through its Deputy Director for Corporate Communications, Mrs Monsurat Amasa-Oyelude.
The agency emphasized that employers are required to adhere to this in line with the Personal Income Tax Act (PITA) Cap P8 LFN 2004 (as amended).
The statement quoted the Chairman of LIRS, Mr Ayodele Subair, as stressing that the filing of the tax returns is a legal obligation, warning that failure to comply will result in statutory sanctions, including penalties, as prescribed by law.
Section 81 of PITA mandates employers to submit comprehensive annual returns detailing all emoluments paid to employees, including taxes deducted and remitted to relevant tax authorities. These returns must be filed no later than January 31 each year and cover the income and taxes paid during the preceding year (2024).
“Employers must prioritize the timely filing of their annual income tax returns to avoid penalties.
“Submitting returns on or before the deadline ensures compliance with the law and supports accurate revenue tracking, which is essential for Lagos State’s fiscal planning and sustainability,” the LIRS chief stated.
To simplify the process, the agency has transitioned to a fully digital filing system, allowing employers to file their annual tax returns exclusively through the LIRS e-Tax portal, as manual submissions are no longer accepted.
Mr Subair described the e-Tax platform as secure, user-friendly, and designed to provide employers with a convenient way to manage their tax obligations.
Employers are reminded to include the Payer ID of all employees in their returns, advising employees without a Taxpayer ID to generate one immediately on the e-Tax platform to prevent disruptions during the filing process.
To assist employers, LIRS has deployed staff across its offices to provide guidance on using the e-Tax portal and addressing related concerns.
By Adedapo Adesanya
For almost a month, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) website has been down, blocking access to crucial information about the Nigerian economy.
The nation’s statistics agency shut down its website after it claims it had been hacked on December 18, 2024.
Since then, important information such as capital flows into the Nigerian economy in the third quarter of 2024, as well as an update on outstanding local and foreign debt for the same period, have become inaccessible.
The website blackout occurred a day after the NBS published its Crime Experience and Security Perception Survey on December 17. According to the report, Nigerians paid a total of N2.23 trillion in ransom within one year, from May 2023 to April 2024.
There was a widespread report (excluding Business Post) that the Department of State Services (DSS) summoned the Statistician-General of the Federation, Mr Adeniran Adeyemi, based on the report.
This was later denied by the secret police.
The agency then closed the site on December 18, further warning against using any information posted on it until it was fully restored.
In its last update on X, formerly Twitter, the stats office said, “This is to inform the public that the NBS Website has been hacked and we are working to recover it. Please disregard any message or report posted until the website is fully restored. Thank you.”
This lack of information has raised worry about inflation report for December, which is usually due on January 15 as per recent trends.
The inflation numbers set the tone for decisions of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria, which should hold its first policy meeting for 2025 on January 27-28.
Analysts told this newspaper that the continued blackout on the NBS website raises concerns about credibility and trust on data that will be provided in the future.
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