Reps invite Ministers of Finance, Power, others over $33m Azura power deal

The House of Representatives has invited the Ministers of Power and Finance and heads of Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) over a 33 million dollars Azura power purchase agreement.

Other agencies invited include: Nigeria Bulk Electricity Transmission (NBET), Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

Rep. James Faleke, Chairman, House of Reps Committee on Finance, which is investigating alleged breach of agreement and perennial power failure in the country invited the heads of all the agencies in Abuja on Tuesday.

Faleke said the agencies would be brought before the committee to explain their role in the power deal, adding that the appropriate date for their appearance before the committee would be communicated to the affected agencies.

The committee had on Aug. 19 discovered that the country was committed to a monthly payment of 33 million dollars in a take or pay deal.

The committee however discovered that Azura power plant had not been able to deliver the 450 megawatt of electricity agreed to with TCN to the national grid since the contract was signed.

Faleke, however, told the Managing Director, TCN, Mr Sule Abdulazeez to present its budget allocation from 2002 to date and the contract awarded and the certificates by TCN on power transmission line.

He said that if Azura would demand money in dollars from power being generated, Nigeria should also demand money from Azura in dollars for power being used from the national grid.

The committee also asked TCN to provide it with its Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) from 2010 including its audit report, while also picking holes in the IGR being spent by TCN outside budgetary provision.