President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has inaugurated an 11-member committee to facilitate the incorporation of the Grid Asset Management Company Limited (GAMCO), a new initiative aimed at addressing long-standing challenges in Nigeria’s electricity transmission and grid management.
The committee was constituted following the approval of GAMCO’s establishment by the Federal Executive Council at its meeting earlier in the week. The initiative is designed as a strategic intervention to unlock stranded power generation, strengthen grid management, and improve electricity transmission efficiency across the country.
Speaking during the inauguration on behalf of the President, the Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, described the proposed company as a transformative step toward reforming Nigeria’s power sector.
He said the establishment of GAMCO represents one of the administration’s most significant interventions in the electricity value chain, particularly in addressing persistent bottlenecks in grid infrastructure and power evacuation.
Gbajabiamila urged members of the committee to align their work with the President’s broader vision for the sector and deliver on the mandate assigned to them.
According to him, the committee will conduct a comprehensive review of existing laws, regulations, policies, and institutional frameworks governing the electricity industry, covering generation, transmission, distribution, and market operations.
The panel will also examine the implications of the Electricity Reform Laws (2025) and other unbundling arrangements on asset ownership, management structures, and regulatory oversight. It will identify potential areas of conflict or overlap between the proposed GAMCO framework and existing legal and regulatory provisions.
Part of its mandate includes assessing the legal status, ownership structures, and contractual obligations associated with assets of the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) and the National Integrated Power Project (NIPP), particularly the Omotosho, Olorunsogo, and Ihovbor power plants earmarked for the project’s pilot phase.
The committee will also evaluate the interface between GAMCO’s proposed responsibilities and the statutory functions of the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), while examining the fiscal and financial implications of the initiative, including its potential impact on market liquidity, subsidy exposure, and revenue frameworks.
In addition, the panel will determine whether the operationalisation of GAMCO would require amendments to existing legislation, subsidy regulations, or executive directives.
The Chief of Staff will serve as chairman of the committee. Members include the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice; the Ministers of Power, Works, and Finance; the Ministers of Communications and Digital Economy, Science, Technology and Innovation, and Aviation and Aerospace Development; the Minister of State for Petroleum; the Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service; and energy law expert, Professor Yemi Oke.
The Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Affairs Office, Dr. John Chidiebere Ezeamama, will serve as secretary of the committee.
GAMCO is designed to recover and optimise stranded power generation capacity, with the Benin–Lagos transmission corridor selected for the pilot phase.
The initiative will begin by optimising power generation from three National Integrated Power Plants—Omotosho, Olorunsogo, and Ihovbor—with installed capacities of 513 megawatts, 754 megawatts, and 508 megawatts respectively.
The Federal Government projects that the intervention could recover at least 1,600 megawatts of currently underutilised capacity within 18 to 24 months.
As part of the plan, GAMCO will develop a new high-capacity 330kV double-circuit transmission line along the Benin–Lagos corridor, one of the most critical power evacuation routes serving Nigeria’s major industrial and commercial centres in Lagos and Ogun states.
The company will be wholly owned by the Federal Government as a commercial venture, with shares held by the Ministry of Finance Incorporated.
Under the proposed framework, the Niger Delta Power Holding Company is expected to grant GAMCO concession and lease arrangements covering the selected NIPP plants, while the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) will provide rights for the development, financing, and operation of the new transmission infrastructure.
Officials say the broader objective of the initiative is to strengthen grid reliability, mobilise private capital into transmission infrastructure, and translate underperforming national power assets into consistently delivered electricity supply.
The government believes that improved power evacuation and grid stability will enhance industrial productivity, support job creation, boost investor confidence, and improve electricity access for households, in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the Tinubu administration.
