President Bola Tinubu has appealed to power generation companies (GENCOs) to give the federal government more time to verify and validate longstanding debts estimated at N4 trillion.

 

Speaking at a high-level meeting with members of the Association of Power Generation Companies, led by Col. Sani Bello (rtd), on Friday at the Presidential Villa, Tinubu reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to resolving the power sector’s liquidity crisis.

 

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Olu Verheijen, special adviser to the president on energy, disclosed that a N4 trillion bond programme had received anticipatory approval to address the shortfall but added that final disbursement would be based on validated claims.

 

President Tinubu acknowledged the historic liabilities inherited from previous administrations and pledged transparency and fairness in addressing them:

“I accept the assets and liabilities of my predecessors, and there is no question about that. But that acceptance must be on credible grounds,” he said.

 

“I need to wear the audit cap of verifiability, authenticity, and the fact that this inheritance is not a mere deodorant but a support structure for critical economic and industrial promotion.”

The president emphasised the need for patience from GENCOs and financial institutions, noting that government agencies are actively engaging audit and legal firms to scrutinise the claims.

 

While reaffirming his belief in a market-driven electricity sector, the president said the industry’s long-neglected legacy issues are now receiving the attention they deserve.

“This is a longstanding issue that is now being dealt with. I know how much we have been able to save on fuel subsidies. We introduced the alternative, CNG, to bring relief back to the people,” he said.

 

“To our friends in the banking sector, I ask that we avoid foreclosures. Sharpen your pencils, but keep an eraser handy. Let’s persevere together.”

 

Describing electricity as “the most important discovery of humanity in the last 1,000 years,” the President reaffirmed that access to electricity is fundamental to economic growth and human dignity.

 

Ms. Verheijen attributed the liquidity crisis to “a combination of unfunded tariff shortfalls and market shortfalls” that have built up over a decade.

She stated that as of April 2025, the federal government is carrying a verified exposure of N4 trillion in debts to GENCOs, an accumulation dating back to 2015.

 

“We have since sat with 27 GENCOs—not all of them are here today—and reviewed their PPAs and gas sales agreements to understand the legitimacy of their claims. The GENCOs claimed about N4 trillion from 2015 to the end of 2023,” she said.

 

According to her, the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Company (NBET)—the agency that contractually mediates between GENCOs and the government—has validated N1.8 trillion of these claims so far.

“Since that period, we have had ₦200 billion in unfunded subsidies that have accumulated the federal government’s liability,” she said.

 

“So, as of April 2025, the total exposure that we are carrying at the moment is N4 trillion.”

 

However, Ms. Verheijen cautioned that the figure remains subject to downward revision, pending final validation.

“While there is an anticipatory approval of this N4 trillion bond programme, it is subject to negotiations and final settlement of agreements,” she said.

 

“Only the amounts that the federal government validly owes are the things that will make it into the issuance by DMO.”

 

Adebayo Adelabu, minister of power, commended President Tinubu for the attention given to the power sector, stating that the administration’s reforms have restored investor confidence and improved performance across the electricity value chain.

Adelabu said the Tinubu administration signed into law the Electricity Act, 2023, which decentralises and liberalises the electricity market. This was the first legislation signed by the president upon assuming office.

He noted that the administration has launched Nigeria’s first Integrated National Electricity Policy in 24 years to drive coherence in sector planning and delivery.