By EMMA UJAH, Abuja Bureau Chief
The Bureau of Public Enterprises, BPE, has sent the final industry and transaction documents on the Power Holding Company of Nigeria, PHCN, to the 152 potential investors interested in buying up its successor companies.

President Goodluck Jonathan, earlier in the week, gave BPE a marching order on PHCN privatization and warned the organization to adhere strictly to the privatization guidelines and that he would not accept excuses for infractions in any form in the privatization exercise.

The 13 bid documents sent to the potential investors, yesterday, according to the agency, included Share Sale Agreement; Shareholders Agreement; Performance Agreement; and Concession Agreement.

Industry documents sent along were: Gas Sale and Aggregation Agreement; Gas Transportation Agreement; Bulk Power Purchase Agreement (Thermal); Bulk Power Purchase Agreement (Hydro); Vesting Contract; Transmission Use of System Agreement; Grid Connection Agreement; and Ancillary Services Agreement.

The Head of Public Communications, Mr. Chukwuma Nwoko , explained that the BPE had on March 30, 2012 issued the revised industry and transaction documents to the bidders and informed them that the privatisation agency expects to receive all comments on the documents by April 20, 2012. In the wake of bidders’ feedback, another meeting of all industry stakeholders was held in Abuja on May 5 and 6, 2012 to finalise the bidding documents.

The next stage of the privatisation exercise is the harvest of the bidders’ technical and financial proposals which has July 17, 2012 as deadline for generation companies and July 31, 2012 for distribution companies.