The Fund for the Development of Exports in Africa (FEDA) of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has announced that it has received internal approvals to acquire a strategic minority stake in Geregu Power Plc.
FEDA is Afreximbank’s development impact investment platform with a mandate to provide capital to promote intra-African trade, export development and industrialization in Africa.
As part of its intervention efforts in Africa’s energy sector, FEDA made a strategic decision to support Africa’s leading energy platforms, including the transition fuels and renewable energy sectors, according to a statement issued on Tuesday.
He described Geregu Power as one of the leading power generation companies in Nigeria with a capacity of more than 430 megawatts and a highly strategic asset in realizing the roadmap of the country’s power sector.
According to the statement, FEDA aims to support the business as a minority investor and to work with the current owners and management team to drive expansion of the business in the coming years.
Commenting on the deal, Femi Otedola, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Geregu Power, said: “As a pioneer company in power generation on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), the interest shown by FEDA is an expression of its firm belief that only on the company, but also on the future of the Nigerian electricity supply industry.
“In a period of contraction in global economic activity, attracting this investment from FEDA is a testament to our long-term strategic plans and will accelerate our expansion into the broader West African market.”
For his part, Benedict Oramah, Chairman and Chairman of Afreximbank and Chairman of FEDA Platform Entities, said: “We are very pleased with this proposed investment, which marks a critical step in supporting Nigeria’s energy sector and more generally , to advance the industrialization of Africa. and energy security.
“Without adequate energy, Africa cannot achieve global export competitiveness. Afreximbank and its subsidiaries, including FEDA, are focused on creating a level playing field so that African products can compete on an almost equal footing with those originating from other markets. We hope this approved investment will bring us closer to that goal.”
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Marlène Ngoyi, CEO of FEDA, said the proposed investment in Geregu Power demonstrates FEDA’s ability to intervene in opportunities and sectors that are critical to driving the structural transformation of trade on the continent.
“Geregu Power is a key player in the Nigerian energy sector. FEDA is pleased to partner with the Company in its next phase of growth.”
Geregu Power Plc is a 435 MW thermal power plant located in Ajaokuta, Kogi State, Nigeria and is listed on the NGX. The plant is majority owned and operated by Amperion Power Distribution Company Limited. The power plant consists of three natural gas-fired Siemens V94.2 STG5-2000E simple cycle gas turbine generating units with an installed capacity of 435MW. The turbine units are GT11, GT12 and GT13 and each is designed to produce 145 MW at 15.75 KV, increased to 330 kV through a 173.6 MVA power transformer and now generates on average 10 percent of Nigerian energy.
Headquartered in Kigali, Rwanda, FEDA is the impact investing subsidiary of Afreximbank. FEDA was created to provide equity, quasi-equity, and long-term debt capital similar to equity to finance the billion-dollar funding gap (particularly in equity) needed to transform the business sector in Africa. FEDA pursues a multi-sector investment strategy along intra-African trade, value-added export development and manufacturing value chains, including financial services, technology, consumer goods and retail, manufacturing, transport, energy and logistics, agribusiness, as well as ancillary infrastructure that facilitates trade, such as industrial parks.
