The Federal Government has announced plans to raise N729 billion through a second bond issuance aimed at clearing verified legacy debts in Nigeria’s electricity sector.
The Series II bond issuance, under the Power Sector Multi-Instrument Issuance Programme, is expected to open on August 3 and close on August 14, with completion scheduled for August 24, subject to regulatory approvals.
CardinalStone Partners, the lead issuing house and financial adviser, presented the timetable during the NBET Finance Company Plc Series II Bond Investors’ Forum in Abuja.
The move follows the government’s first bond issuance, through which N501 billion was raised. Of that amount, N300 billion came from investors, while N201 billion was issued as non-cash instruments to eligible power sector beneficiaries.
Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, said the government’s decision to return to the capital market was driven by the success of the first issuance and its commitment to meeting financial obligations.
Oyedele said Nigeria’s electricity sector had suffered years of financial difficulties caused by tariff shortfalls, settlement gaps, debts owed to generation companies and suppliers, and grid instability, all of which weakened investment and sector performance.
He explained that the government adopted a market-based approach after verification reduced the sector’s outstanding eligible liabilities from an initial N4 trillion settlement ceiling approved by the Federal Executive Council to about N3.3 trillion.
According to him, the verification process involved reviewing claims and matching them with actual services provided.
The minister disclosed that the first series of the bond programme raised N501 billion, with payments made to eight generation companies covering 17 power plants and their gas suppliers.
He added that the government paid the first scheduled instalment on the seven-year bond on July 14, describing it as evidence of its commitment to investors.
The second issuance will involve about N400 billion raised through book-building, while N329 billion will be issued as non-cash instruments to qualified beneficiaries.
Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, said the bond programme was not only a fundraising effort but part of broader reforms aimed at creating a financially sustainable and reliable electricity market.
He said unresolved historical debts remained a major obstacle to attracting fresh investment into the sector and called for continued investor support for the new bond issuance.
The Special Adviser to the President on Power, Rilwan Lanre Babalola, said the programme was designed to restore confidence, improve liquidity and strengthen governance within Nigeria’s electricity market.
The Federal Government said the N729 billion Series II issuance would help settle more verified debts, inject liquidity into the power sector and support ongoing reforms aimed at improving electricity supply and attracting private investment.
