Geregu Power Plc, the first power generating company to be quoted on the local bourse, ended the year with a star performance, gaining 49 per cent after being listed on the Nigerian Exchange for just 86 days.
The stock closed at N149 on the last trading day of the year, up from N100 at which it was listed on October 5, 2022, with 2.5 billion shares. At the closing price, the company’s market capitalization has risen to N372.5bn, up from N250bn at listing.
The result came just days after the Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA) of the African Export-Import Bank announced it had received internal approval to take up strategic stakes in the electric power generating power.
The statement quoted the CEO of FEDA, Marlène Ngoyi, as saying: “The proposed investment in Geregu Power demonstrates FEDA’s ability to intervene in opportunities and sectors that are critical towards driving the structural transformation of trade on the continent. Geregu Power is a key player in Nigeria’s power sector. FEDA is pleased to partner with the Company in its next phase of growth.”
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Chairman of the Board of Directors of Geregu, Femi Otedola declared that “as the pioneer Power Generation Company on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), the interest shown by FEDA, is an expression of its firm belief not only in the Company but also in the future of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI)”.
The decision by Afreximbank is a good development and will encourage more investments, said Dr. Muda Yusuf, Director of Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise.
“For Afreximbank to come into Geregu means it has seen something worthy in the country’s sector. We need more investments across the value chain,” he said in an interview with Daily Trust.
This investment should also encourage the government to hands-off the transmission segment of the power sector, he said. The government-owned Transmission Company of Nigeria could become more efficient if it goes to the private sector, Yusuf said.
“The power sector has more potential because of the huge deficit. But we need to get the ecosystem right through right pricing,” he noted.
Geregu, a 435MW thermal power plant based in Ajaokuta, Kogi State. The plant is majority owned and operated by Amperion Power Distribution Company Limited and generating about 10% of Nigeria’s power.
The Nigerian stock market All-Share Index closed the year at 51,251.06 points or a 19.98% growth for the local bourse. This is over three times the 6.07% recorded by the market last year.