NEC approves additional $250m for Nigeria Sovereign Investment

…Raises panel to review ownership structure of
Discos

The National Economic Council (NEC) on Thursday approved
additional investment of $250 million into the Nigeria Sovereign
Investment Authority (NSIA).

This was disclosed to State House correspondents by Managing
Director of NSIA, Uchechi Orji, at the end of the NEC meeting
presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the Presidential
Villa.

The body has been managing the surplus income produced from
Nigeria’s excess oil reserves.

Commencing operations in October 2012, the fund was allocated an
initial US$1 billion in seed capital.

An additional $0.5billion was later contributed to the fund.

Orji has disclosed the setting up of a committee to work out
modalities for collaboration between the NSIA and the National
Pension Commission on how to channel pension funds for
investment.

He had presented NSIA’s 2018 annual report and 2019 finance
update to NEC, disclosing that the agency made a profit total of
N44.3 billion Naira in 2018 adding that so far in 2019 as at the
end of the first six months.

He also updated the council that they have made a profit of N24
billion so far.

“This is achieved in the face of a volatile international market
environment driven by the trade dispute between the United States
and China as well as Brexit challenges” Orji said

NEC passed a vote of confidence in the NSIA whose activities are
focused on its infrastructure fund on agriculture, road, power,
healthcare projects and industrialization.

Orji said that NSIA as the manager of the Presidential
Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) is focused on deploying
capital to ensure the completion of the second Niger Bridge,
Abuja-Kano Highway and Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

“Other projects under the PIDF include the Mambila Hydro Power
project and East-Ways Road.”

He announced NSIA’s intention to deploy capital in expanding its
health projects, following a successful implementation of its
cancer treatment project, Public-Private Partnership (PPP) with
LUTH as well as a diagnostic and Radiology centre in Aminu Kano
Specialist Hospital to be commissioned next month and the Federal
Medical Centre Umahia PPP project which will be finished in the
first quarter of next year.

“To facilitate this, the NSIA will create co-investment fund to
bring other investors into these projects to ensure that get to
completion and the revenue model will include tolling the roads as
other opportunities to ensure that these roads are viable.” he
said

Imo State Governor, Emeka Ihedioha, said that the Accountant
General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris while also briefing on
behalf of the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning
reported to Council that the balances in Excess Crude Account (ECA)
as at 20th November, 2019, is $324,539,031.51, with Stabilization
Account at 20th November, 2019 N29, 480,483,393.33, while the
Natural Resources Development Fund Account stands at 20th November,
2019 = N 79, 751, 649,521.54.

The NEC also resolved to review the status of the ownership
structure of the power Distribution Companies in the country.

The review is to be done by an ad hoc committee chaired by the
Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir el-Rufai.

Governors representing the six geo-political zones on the Board
of the Niger Delta Power Holding Company will serve on the review
committee.