LAGOS – Togo has expressed interest in increasing electricity imports from Nigeria through the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) to meet rising domestic demand.
The Managing Director of Niger Delta Power Holding Company, Jennifer Adighije, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday following talks with Togo’s national electricity utility.The visiting delegation from Compagnie Energie Electrique du Togo was led by its Director-General, Débo‑K’mba Barandao, to strengthen existing power supply cooperation.Barandao said C.E.E.T currently purchases about 75 megawatt-hours of electricity from NDPHC under a bilateral power supply arrangement.“The imported electricity has played a significant role in sustaining stable power supply and economic activities across Togo,” he said.According to him, Nigerian electricity imports help maintain reliable and affordable power for households, businesses and public institutions across the country.He commended NDPHC’s consistency, noting that the partnership has improved reliability within Togo’s national grid and strengthened regional energy cooperation.Barandao said electricity demand in Togo had surged due to new consumers, especially in industrial and commercial sectors, alongside government efforts to expand national access.“In view of this development, C.E.E.T is strongly interested in increasing the volume of electricity it off-takes from NDPHC,” he said.He added that additional supply would support power expansion plans and ensure stable electricity for newly connected consumers nationwide.Responding, Adighije reaffirmed NDPHC’s readiness to deepen cooperation and sustain electricity exports to neighbouring countries within the West African region.She said the company operates multiple plants under the National Integrated Power Project, with capacity to support increased regional electricity supply.According to her, the partnership aligns with wider regional efforts under Economic Community of West African States to strengthen electricity trade among member states.Adighije stressed that expanding electricity exports would require bankable and sustainable commercial arrangements between both parties.She noted that credible financial guarantees and structured payment mechanisms would help reduce risks associated with cross-border electricity trade.“A reliable payment framework will safeguard NDPHC’s interests and enable continued support for regional energy stability through power exports,” she said.Both parties described the meeting as productive and reaffirmed commitment to strengthening electricity sector cooperation.They also agreed to sustain engagements aimed at developing workable frameworks for increased electricity supply from Nigeria to Togo.Industry observers say the move reflects growing efforts among West African countries to deepen regional electricity trade and address persistent power shortages. (NAN)
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Togo, Niger, and Benin owe Nigeria $17.8m, an equivalent of over N25bn at the current exchange rate, for electricity supplied under bilateral arrangements, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission has said.
In its Third Quarter 2025 report, NERC disclosed that the three international customers were invoiced a total of $18.69m by the Market Operator for electricity supplied during the period, but they remitted only $7.125m, leaving an outstanding balance of $11.56m.
Similarly, the international bilateral customers had legacy invoices of $14.7m, out of which they paid $7.84m, leaving a balance of $6.23m. The PUNCH reports that the debt incurred from the previous quarters and that of Q3 2025 amounted to $17.8m. This is N25.36bn at an exchange rate of N1,425 to a dollar.
The regulator identified the international offtakers as Compagnie Énergie Électrique du Togo, Société Béninoise d’Énergie Électrique of the Republic of Benin, and Société Nigérienne d’Électricité of the Republic of Niger.
According to NERC, the three international bilateral customers purchasing power from the grid-connected GenCos made a cumulative payment of $7.125m against the $18.69m invoice issued to them by the Market Operator for services rendered in 2025/Q3.
It stated that the remittance level represented a 38.09 per cent remittance performance, with more than half of the invoices remaining unpaid at the end of the quarter.
It was noted that the electricity supplied to the three countries was generated by grid-connected Nigerian generation companies and delivered through bilateral cross-border power arrangements.
“The three international bilateral customers being supplied by GenCos in the NESI made a payment of $7.12m against the cumulative invoice of $18.69m issued by the MO for services rendered in 2025/Q3, translating to a remittance performance of 38.09 per cent.
In contrast, NERC said domestic bilateral customers performed better, remitting N3.19bn out of the N3.64bn invoiced to them during the quarter, representing a remittance rate of 87.61 per cent.
“The domestic bilateral customers made a cumulative payment of N3.19bn against the invoice of N3.64bn issued to them by the MO for services rendered in 2025/Q3, translating to 87.61 per cent remittance performance,” it added.
The commission explained that some bilateral customers paid for power purchased in the quarters before the one being reviewed.
“It is noteworthy that some bilateral customers also made payments for outstanding MO invoices from previous quarters, as follows: the MO received $7.84m from the international bilateral customers and N1.3bn from the domestic bilateral customers,” the report added.
The Commission further disclosed that Nigeria’s 11 electricity distribution companies remitted a combined N381.29bn to the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc and the Market Operator in Q3 2025, out of a total invoice of N400.48bn, translating to a remittance performance of 95.21 per cent.
NERC said the figures were based on reconciled market settlements submitted to the commission as of December 18, 2025, as part of its statutory assessment of the commercial performance of the electricity market.
Nigerian passengers aboard an Air France flight have been left stranded in Lomé, Togo, following a diversion caused by bad weather in Abuja.
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, raised the alarm over the situation in a statement posted on his official X account on Thursday night.
Keyamo revealed that the Air France flight from Paris to Abuja was unable to land due to adverse weather conditions and was redirected to Lomé. However, he expressed concern over the airline’s handling of the situation.
He said, “I have just been alerted of a situation involving mostly Nigerian passengers left stranded at Lome, Togo, by Air France. I am told that the flight from Paris bound for Abuja could not land due to the bad weather in Abuja this evening.
“The flight then diverted to Lome. However, the confounding situation now is that instead of bringing the passengers back to Abuja after the storm subsided, there are plans to leave them in Lome till tomorrow, even when that same flight will return to Abuja tonight to pick up passengers.”
The minister disclosed that he immediately took action to address the issue, engaging both his officials and the airline’s representatives.
“After directing my Director of Air Transport management to call the country manager of Air France, I also personally called Air France Nigeria a few minutes ago and insisted that those passengers must be brought back to Abuja tonight or be treated in line with best international standards if they must sleep in Lome.”
As of the time of filing this report, Air France had yet to issue an official statement regarding the matter.
FG to Invalidate Over 22,500 Fake Certificates Procured From Benin Republic, Togo
by Edit
written by Edit
By Our Reporter
The federal government of Nigeria has authorised the termination of employees in both the public and private sectors who possess counterfeit degree certificates acquired from the Republics of Benin and Togo.
During a press conference held in Abuja on Friday to mark his first anniversary in office, Minister of Education Tahir Mamman revealed that these initiatives were sanctioned in a recent meeting of the federal executive council, which was presided over by President Bola Tinubu.
All degree certificates from Cotonou University issued between 2017 and the present will be rendered invalid. Additionally, all personnel currently employed by the Federal Government are to be terminated immediately.
He said, “One of the things we did in the course of the year was — remember when information broke out about some of our students going to neighbouring countries —some not even going at all — to obtain certificates.
“The ministry set up a committee to look into that; the committee came up with a detailed review; that review was sent to the federal executive council about a month ago, which approved some of the recommendations from the ministry.
“Now the recommendations will be implemented along with other ministries and agencies affected, including NYSC, Immigration.
“Because we have to take some major decisions here, some staff who are affected faced disciplinary measures, and that the whole unit went through some kind of review.
“But by and large, we can’t have in our midst people who procure fake certificates and to compete with our students who graduated from our universities and polytechnics through their sweat, some spent four, five, six, or more years going out to compete with people who procure certificates right here without going anywhere, for a lot of them.
“So what the FEC now approves is that, through the data, that NYSC has, about 21,684 students that are parading fake certificates from Benin Republic, obtained between 2019 to 2023.
“Togo is about 1,105. How did that happen? They simply attend schools, which are not recognised in those countries.
“Remember, this point is extremely important. The non-recognition itself is in those countries. They are not institutions recognised to offer degree programs in those countries.
“Instead, some of our parents, take their wards to these institutions, and of course there is no way we would recognise qualifications which are not recognised in those countries.
“In the case of Togo, we have three universities that are officially approved and licensed to offer degrees, and in Benin, there are about five of them.
“So anyone who didn’t attend these universities is parading a fake certificate.
“And from 2017, anybody who attended a university solely run in English is wasting his time because it’s not an approved university. That is their policy.
“But a lot of our countrymen went there—some didn’t go anyway; remember, these numbers are just what we have, a lot of them didn’t even bother to go to NYSC.
“The number may be more…Some who attempted to but couldn’t succeed in the screening process disappeared into thin air.
“So in the final analysis, what the federal government approved is that the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, will issue a circular to all employers, whether public or private, to fish out anybody with a certificate from these institutions—that circular probably would have been out by now.
“And the Head of Service, has also been mandated to fish out from the public service anybody who is parading certificate from these institutions.
“So this is the decision of the federal government on this matter”.