- Nigeria is set for coal electricity generation
- OENPL takes over the coal mines from WEMPCO.
The National Council on Privatisation has approved the take over of the Ogboyega North and South Coal Blocks by Orbit Exploration and Natural Products Limited (OENPL). This approval was made known during the council’s meeting, presided over by the Vice President and Chairman of the NCP, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, at the Presidential Villa, Aso Rock, Abuja.
The Council notes that the Bureau of Public Enterprises’s (BPE) due diligence on the company revealed that OENPL is capable of financing and technically operating the mines. The Council further noted that the Western Metal Products Company (WEMPCO) had requested BPE’s approval to transfer the mineral titles of the two coal blocks to OENPL in line with the provisions of the Asset Share Purchase Agreement (ASPA). Ogboyega North and South Coal Blocks were initially sold to WEMPCO in 2007 for $7.378 million and $7.678,250 million, respectively. However, the company did not operate the mines.
OENPL has proposed to spend ₦112 billion to procure equipment for operationalising the two coal blocks for power generation.