By NKIRUKA NNOROM

The Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, has assured that it has the capacity to accommodate listing from the utilities sector, calling on the companies involved to take advantage of cheap pool of fund offered by the NSE for their expansion projects.

Speaking on ‘Financing the Utilities Sector through the Nigerian Capital Market’ at the third quarter of CEOs’ utilities sector dinner, the NSE’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Oscar Onyema, argued that utilities companies have huge capacity to raise capital, saying that the quality of a company depicted by its financial performance would attract funds from all financial markets both local and international.

The utilities sector comprises of water, power and waste sectors of the economy.

Citing reasons why utilities’ companies should embrace listing, Onyema said that such move would offer them potential for more growth, recognition and strong boost to set standards for other companies.

He emphasised that while key listings on the NSE is from industrial goods, financial services and consumer goods sectors, listing in the Jourhannesburg Stock Exchange include companies in the telecommunications, resources and energy sectors.

Ghana Stock Exchange have most of its listing from companies in the mining, Oil & Gas, telecommunications, and utilities sectors; Egyptian Stock Exchange’ key listings are in telecommunication, utilities and refineries, while those of Nairobi Stock Exchange include companies in the telecommunication, utilities and refineries.

While saying that the market potentials of utilities sector are enormous, he lamented that they are weighed down by varying problems.

Making comparison with 21 other African countries, Onyema said that only 46 percent of the over 170 million Nigerians have access to power supply, adding that Nigerians depend on self power generation to run their businesses.

Saying that power sector remained an important infrastructure pillar, the NSE boss lamented that the sector is characterised by unutilised generation capacity, inefficient supply/plant maintenance, poor gas supply, poorly motivated workforce and captive power supply and lack of investment among others menace.