Genesis Energy Limited and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited have announced plans to supply excess power generated from the Port Harcourt Refining Company to the national grid.

The partnership, unveiled during an official visit by the Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, to Genesis Energy’s operational site within the Port Harcourt Refinery in Eleme, Rivers State, is aimed at improving grid stability, expanding electricity access, and advancing Nigeria’s energy transition goals.

Genesis Energy said in a statement that it operates the nation’s largest licensed private off-grid clean power plant, an 84-megawatt facility that supplies sustainable energy to the Port Harcourt refinery, which is currently dormant due to an ongoing technical review.

Recall that the power minister has recently lamented that Nigeria had over 10,000 megawatts of power locked in idle plants across the nation.

According to Adelabu, the Port Harcourt refinery could only use 20 MW out of its current capacity, leaving over 60 MW stranded.

Under the new arrangement, Genesis Energy and NNPC will work together to channel the refinery’s excess or stranded power to the national grid in line with the Federal Government’s Power Sector Reform and Energy Transition Agenda.

Speaking during the visit, Adelabu commended Genesis Energy’s operational excellence and reaffirmed the Federal Government’s support for private-sector investment in the power industry.

“We have over 10 gigawatts of stranded generation capacity in Nigeria today. We have energy being generated or capacity being installed all over the country that cannot be evacuated because of transmission and distribution bottlenecks,” the minister said.

He added, “We are ready to do everything possible to attract investors to support us so that industries, businesses, and households can have uninterrupted, functional, and reliable electricity. This collaboration will serve as proof of concept for integrating excess capacity into the national grid and could lead to an additional 120 megawatts once the pilot phase is concluded.”

Adelabu further assured that the government would fast-track transmission infrastructure and commercial arrangements to enable seamless evacuation of power from the facility to the grid.

The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Genesis Energy Group, Mr Akinwole Omoboriowo, said the partnership with NNPC underscored the company’s commitment to leveraging clean energy solutions for national development.

“At Genesis Energy, we remain committed to powering progress through strategic partnerships that strengthen Nigeria’s energy infrastructure and expand access to reliable power. This collaboration with NNPC Ltd. exemplifies pragmatic innovation, leveraging existing assets to expand energy access, enhance refinery productivity, and contribute to national development,” Omoboriowo stated.

He added that the initiative would create jobs, support industries, and power local communities, while reinforcing Nigeria’s journey toward a cleaner and more sustainable energy future.

Genesis Energy said it would continue to work with the Federal Government, financiers, and other stakeholders to promote industrial growth, advance the just energy transition, and strengthen national grid reliability.

“The 84 MW off-grid independent power plant operated by Genesis Energy, located within the Port Harcourt Refining Company, stands as the nation’s largest licensed private off-grid clean power plant and the company’s pioneering clean energy investments in the country.

”The facility, powered by three GE TM2500+ gas turbines, supplies uninterrupted, sustainable power directly to the refinery, improving operational efficiency, strengthening local energy security, and reducing dependence on diesel and grid instability. The PHRC IPP also exemplifies how gas-to-power acts as a strategic enabler for renewable energy deployment, with every 1 MW of gas-to-power capacity creating potential for up to 2 MWp of solar power investment, thereby supporting Nigeria’s Just Energy Transition and climate resilience agenda,” the statement added.

The Chairman of the OPEC Board of Governors for 2025 has called on Nigerian oil producers to prioritise domestic refining and value creation instead of exporting raw crude.

Speaking on Wednesday at the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists Pre-Conference Workshop in Lagos, Adeyemi-Bero, who is also the Chief Executive Officer of First Exploration & Petroleum Development Company, said the country must move away from decades of crude exports and focus on retaining value within the local economy.

He said, “We’ve been an oil and gas exporting country. We produced oil; once there was oil, we put it in a tank and sent it abroad. 40 or 50 years later, people blame Shell and others, but I don’t. They are businesses looking for feedstock for their industrialisation. If you give it to them, they’ll still take it.”

Adeyemi-Bero argued that Nigeria had a responsibility to develop its energy resources locally and use them to drive industrial growth, rather than depend on foreign markets.

According to him, President Bola Tinubu would have returned fuel subsidies if the Dangote refinery had not been there to produce fuel locally.

”Just look at the impact the Dangote refinery has had on foreign exchange and gross domestic product growth. You can imagine if that had happened 50 years ago. If the president had said, ‘I’m cancelling subsidies, and I’m not going to allow multiple exchange rates,’ and we didn’t have the option of having petroleum products in this country, I’m sure he would have changed his policies and gone back to subsidies. It’s as simple as that. Let’s not over-aggregate.

This message is saying, We need to decline exports,” Adeyemi-Bero said.

He spoke further that, “If you go to Saudi Arabia today, if you go to the UAE, if you go to Qatar, if you go to Malaysia, if you go to Brazil, they are expanding the value chain and keeping it in their space. Now, one man built a refinery; we fought him, we argued with him. But the impact of that Dangote refinery on our GDP and foreign exchange is big.”

He added that local refining and crude utilisation would also help stabilise the naira and strengthen the nation’s economy.

“If we can sell some oil in naira, let’s do it if it works for both parties. The strength of the naira is what it commands in trade. This is why nobody wants the naira outside this space, but the day you can pay for oil in naira because both parties agree, it strengthens the naira,” he said.

Adeyemi-Bero stressed that Nigeria must deliberately reduce its dependence on exports and focus on value creation to avoid future economic decline.

“We need to decline exports. All of us like to sell, but the person that will buy from us will be willing to buy at the right price. ‘I’m investing in dollars, so don’t come and buy in naira. If I invest in dollars, then pay me in dollars.’ But we could make that happen,” he stated.

He warned that failure to change course could be costly, saying, “We need to shift from being export-driven to value-driven. If we don’t do this over the next decade, we have failed.”

The OPEC Governor also called for renewed commitment among local operators, noting that international oil companies had already played their part.

“The internationals have done their bit. But I do think that God also decided to hand over to Nigerians. ‘They’ve started it; now let me give it to the owners to make it happen,” he said.

Adeyemi-Bero emphasised that the oil and gas sector remained central to achieving the country’s economic aspirations, including its $1tn economy target.

“Nigeria wants to be a $1tn economy. Let’s not worry about where we are today. Is it possible? Yes. Who is going to make it possible? We have a responsibility, probably the primary responsibility, to drive that energy. Energy access and security is a must,” he declared.

He further noted that energy-led growth was essential for national development, saying, “The oil and gas sector can enable that to happen. Because without electricity, without fuel, the economy is not going to grow. So we have a responsibility.”

Adeyemi-Bero urged industry players to take ownership of Nigeria’s energy future, stressing, “The baton has been placed in our hands. We can have oil and gas like the UAE, Saudi Arabia, or Qatar, small nations punching their weight through their resources. We must use ours to step up as a country.”

Earlier in his welcome remarks, the President of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists, Mr Johnbosco Uche, said the pre-conference workshop was a vital part of the association’s annual conference and a platform for industry leaders to deliberate on critical sector issues.

Uche explained that this year’s conference theme, ‘Revitalising the Nigerian Petroleum Exploration and Production Strategies for Energy Security and Sustainable Development’, reflected the urgency of the times and the need for collective industry action.

He said the country must work to increase production to meet its national target while ensuring long-term sustainability.

“In the near term, we need to increase production. The country is pushing to hit the three million barrels per day target. We have to push it to that three million target. But most importantly, sustaining that production is also key,” Uche stated.

The NAPE president underscored the role of explorers in achieving this objective, adding that maintaining technical excellence was vital for the industry’s survival.

First HoldCo Plc has reported a profit after tax of N450.9bn for the nine months ended 30 September 2025.

According to the group’s unaudited financial statement filed with the Nigerian Exchange Limited, the figure represents a 15.5 per cent decline from the N533.9bn profit recorded in the same period of 2024.

First HoldCo’s gross earnings rose by 17.1 per cent year-on-year to N2.63tn from N2.25tn in September 2024, driven by interest income, which rose to N2.29tn in the nine months of 2025 from N1.63tn in the corresponding period of 2024, representing a 40.4 per cent increase. However, interest expense climbed to N791.8bn from N759.1bn, while impairment charges for losses rose to N288.9bn from N171.4bn in the previous year.

The group’s fee and commission income grew to N260.5bn from N205.3bn. First HoldCo also recorded a net foreign exchange gain of N71.9bn, a recovery from a loss of N226.7bn posted a year earlier.

Profit before tax for the group stood at N566.5bn, down from N610.9bn in the corresponding period of 2024.

Similarly, the group’s total comprehensive income declined to N335.1bn from N848.8bn reported in the previous year, while earnings per share dropped to N10.65 from N14.64 in 2024.

Commenting on the development, the Group Managing Director of First HoldCo, Adebowale Oyedeji, said, “FirstHoldCo has once again shown solid earnings capabilities. The Group posted a strong financial performance over the period, with interest income and operating income growing by 40.4 per cent and 23.2 per cent year-on-year, respectively. The robust performance of the core business was supported by a 26.9 per cent rise in gross fees and commission income. Consequently, gross earnings reached N2.6tn, marking a 17.1 per cent year-on-year increase.

“The decline in profit before tax is directly attributable to the normalisation of fair value gains and measures implemented to strengthen the balance sheet for the long term. Our strategic risk management initiatives are already yielding positive results, as evidenced by an improvement in the non-performing loan ratio to 8.5 per cent, and we are on track to exit the forbearance regime by year-end.”

Speaking on the ongoing recapitalisation, Oyedeji said, “Regarding the recapitalisation of FirstBank, the first phase of our private placement capital raise has been successfully executed. Pending final regulatory approvals, we anticipate this phase will conclude in November 2025, ensuring FirstBank’s full compliance with the minimum capital requirements before year-end 2025. The proceeds from the subsequent rounds of capital raising will be used to further enhance and broaden our innovative financial solutions and explore value-accretive opportunities.

“Overall, FirstHoldCo’s underlying metrics affirm its fundamental strength, resilience, and scalability of operations. The Group is well-positioned to not only achieve its 2029 financial targets but also to significantly enhance shareholder returns.”