The managements of Egbin Power Plc, Ikeja Electric Plc, and First Independent Power Limited have refuted reports that they have been taken over by a bank due to the loans they secured for operational use.
It was reported on Wednesday that these energy firms were now under a new management controlled by a receiver, Mr Kunle Ogunba (SAN), appointed by the financial institution over the debts.
The reports, contrary to a subsisting court ruling, erroneously claimed the appointment of a receiver over KEPCO Energy Resource Nigeria Limited, NG Power-HPS Limited, and New Electricity Distribution Company, with operating companies as follows: KEPCO (Egbin Power), NG Power-HPS Limited (FIPL) and New Electricity Distribution Company (Ikeja Electric).
Reacting to the publications, which emanated from “advertorials published in This Day Newspapers on August 6, 2025,” the Chief Legal and Regulatory Officer of Ikeja Electric, Mr Babatunde Osadare, said on behalf of the others that no court has handed over the firms to a receiver as claimed, describing the advertorials as misleading because they “represent a gross misrepresentation of facts and a malicious attempt at self-help designed to subvert the course of justice.”
“We state unequivocally and for the record that Egbin Power Plc, First Independent Power Limited, and Ikeja Electric Plc are absolutely not in receivership, and their assets, businesses, or undertakings are not under the management of any external receiver/manager whatsoever,” he stressed.
Mr Osadare explained that in definitive rulings delivered on August 5, 2025, in suit numbers FHC/L/CS/1242, FHC/L/CS/1244, FHC/L/CS/1245, Justice Akintayo Aluko of the Federal High Court in Lagos explicitly restrained the lenders and their purported receiver from taking any adverse actions.
According to him, the rulings specifically prohibits the purported receiver from accelerating the disputed loan facility before its maturity, interfering in any manner with the assets, businesses or undertakings of the power entities, including operational accounts, enforcing any share security over the assets of the firms or their sponsors based on the disputed debt, or unilaterally enforcing any finance documents related to the disputed debt.
“We therefore urge the general public, our valued customers, financial partners, regulators, and all stakeholders to completely disregard the falsehoods presented in the aforementioned This Day advertorials and any related, unfolding misleading press releases.
“The core matters referenced are actively being litigated and the Lenders, represented by the purported Receiver/Manager, have formally submitted to the Court’s jurisdiction,” the legal practitioner stated.
Reassuring all stakeholders, Mr Osadare said the power companies emphatically reaffirm their steadfast commitment to the development of the nation’s power sector and their vital role of responsibly powering homes, communities, and businesses across the nation.
“Egbin Power, First Independent Power, and Ikeja Electric remain fully operational, financially stable, and firmly under the control of their legitimate management.
“Our focus remains unwavering on our core mission: providing reliable electricity and driving the growth of Nigeria’s critical power sector. We have full confidence in the Nigerian judicial system to fairly resolve the underlying disputes,” he declared.