President Bola Tinubu has constituted an 11-member committee to oversee the smooth incorporation of the Grid Asset Management Company Limited.
The inauguration comes 48 hours after the Federal Executive Council approved a memo presented by Tinubu for the creation of GAMCO on Wednesday.
GAMCO is a new entity designed to address the country’s chronic power transmission challenges, Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, revealed on Wednesday.
The Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, who inaugurated the committee on Friday at the State House, Abuja, described GAMCO as “one of the revolutionary steps taken by Mr President and this administration in the all-important power sector.”
Gbajabiamila in a statement announcing the inauguration of the committee by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said “the proposed establishment of GAMCO is basically to optimise and revolutionise power generation, and in particular, the grid and transmission sector.”
He called on the committee members to align with the President’s vision and stick to their mandate of ensuring GAMCO’s successful takeoff.
The committee will conduct a comprehensive review of existing laws, regulations, policies, and institutional frameworks governing the electricity value chain, including generation, transmission, distribution, and market operations.
It will examine the implications of the Electricity Reform Laws 2025 and related unbundling arrangements on asset ownership, management, and regulatory oversight, as well as identify areas of conflict, overlap, or inconsistency between the proposed GAMCO framework and existing legal instruments.
A key assignment is to assess the legal status, ownership structure, and contractual obligations of the Niger Delta Power Holding Company and National Integrated Power Project assets, including the Omotosho, Olorunsogo, and Ihovbor plants, which GAMCO plans to use for its pilot phase.
The committee will also evaluate the interface between GAMCO’s proposed mandate and the statutory functions of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, and determine the fiscal, financial, and market implications of the proposal.
Additionally, it will determine whether the establishment and operationalisation of GAMCO require amendments to primary legislation, subsidy regulations, and executive directives.
Gbajabiamila chairs the committee, with the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, and the Ministers of Power, Works, and Finance as members.
Other members include the Ministers of Communication and Digital Economy, Science, Technology and Innovation, Aviation and Aerospace Development, the Minister of State for Petroleum, the Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service, and energy expert Professor Yemi Oke.
The Permanent Secretary of the Cabinet Affairs Office, Dr John Ezeamama, serves as the committee’s secretary.
GAMCO aims to recover and optimize stranded power generation using the Benin-Lagos transmission corridor as a pilot phase, addressing Nigeria’s power sector challenges through optimization, private capital mobilization, and disciplined asset management.
The Federal Government will fully own GAMCO as a commercial venture, with shares held by the Ministry of Finance Incorporated.
The pilot phase will focus on optimising power output from the Omotosho (513MW), Olorunsogo (754MW), and Ihovbor (508MW) National Integrated Power Plants along the Benin-Lagos corridor, which evacuates bulk power supply to Ogun and Lagos states, Nigeria’s largest industrial and commercial centers.
GAMCO projects to recover at least 1,600MW within 18 to 24 months, alongside the development of a new high-capacity 330KV+ double-circuit transmission line along the same corridor.
The success of the pilot phase will lead to the establishment of a scalable model that can be extended across additional plants and corridors, forming the backbone of long-term grid stabilisation and expansion.
At present, substantial Federal Government investment in NIPP generation assets remains under-optimized due to operational inefficiencies and transmission evacuation bottlenecks, resulting in stranded capacity and suboptimal return on public capital.
GAMCO plans to unlock the stranded power of the three selected NIPP plants and develop a parallel high-capacity transmission corridor along the Benin-Lagos axis, translating underperforming national assets into reliably delivered megawatts.
As proposed, the Niger Delta Power Holding Company will grant GAMCO concession and lease arrangements for the three plants, while the Transmission Company of Nigeria will grant GAMCO the right to develop, finance, and operate a greenfield 330KV+ double-circuit independent power transmission line along the identified corridor.
The country’s power sector has been plagued by transmission challenges despite increased generation capacity, with frequent grid collapses and limited evacuation capacity preventing generated power from reaching consumers.
The country currently generates between 4,000MW and 5,700MW despite installed capacity of over 12,000MW, largely due to transmission bottlenecks and gas supply constraints.
The initiative aims to enhance industrial productivity, safeguard jobs, improve investor confidence, and boost welfare outcomes for Nigerian households, aligning with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the Tinubu’s administration.
