The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) has confirmed the sale of the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) for ₦100 billion as the Federal Government moves to restructure troubled power distribution companies.
However, the deal has already sparked fresh legal disputes amid allegations of secrecy and undervaluation.
AMCON’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Gbenga Alake, disclosed the sale during a media session with senior editors in Lagos on Thursday.
He stated that the Corporation renegotiated the transaction to secure nearly double the initial offer for the DisCo.
“Today, I announce to you that Ibadan DisCo has been sold,” Alake told reporters. “When we came in, it had already been sold, but we rejected the initial deal. We insisted on a revised offer, and at the end of the day, we got almost double of what Ibadan DisCo was going to be sold for.”
Ibadan DisCo is one of five power distribution companies under AMCON and banking sector management following financial insolvency.
The others are Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC), Benin Electricity Distribution Company, Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company and Kano Electricity Distribution Company.
In April 2024, the Federal Government confirmed plans to dispose of its stakes in the struggling DisCos through AMCON and designated banks.
Alake acknowledged that the sale of Ibadan DisCo has triggered legal disputes, with various stakeholders challenging the process in court.
“We have sold it… and whatever is still happening in court, we will face it,” he said, expressing confidence that due process was followed.
In May, a civil society organisation, the African Initiative Against Abuse of Public Trust, filed a lawsuit at the Federal High Court in Abuja against AMCON, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), and IBEDC over what it describes as a “secretive and illegal” sale.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/866/2025, alleges that the planned transfer of a 60 percent stake in IBEDC for $62 million is grossly undervalued compared to the $169 million paid for the same stake during the 2013 privatisation.
The CSO claims the new deal implies a loss of $107 million to the Nigerian public and called for a halt to the transaction pending a thorough review.
AMCON has not publicly disclosed the identity of the preferred bidder or the detailed terms of the transaction but insists the sale followed transparent negotiations and achieved fair market value.
Industry analysts note that the sale forms part of broader efforts to revive the power sector by transferring ownership of distressed utilities to investors with the capacity to inject fresh capital and improve efficiency.
Despite the legal pushback, AMCON maintains that the sale aligns with its mandate to recover bad loans and stabilise companies under its administration.
Sector stakeholders are watching closely as the outcome of the lawsuit could test the credibility of ongoing privatisation efforts and the ability of regulators to enforce compliance in Nigeria’s electricity market, which continues to face chronic funding, governance, and operational challenges.
