WorldStage Newsonline– The managements of Egbin Power Plc, Ikeja Electric Plc, and First Independent Power Ltd owned by the Shara Energy Group have refuted what they called false media reports sourced from misleading advertorials published in This Day Newspapers on August 6, 2025, alleging the appointment of “Kunle Ogunba Esq. SAN” as Receiver/Manager over the entities.
The advertorials said a Federal High Court in Lagos allegedly confirmed the appointment of Kunle Ogunba (SAN) and Associates as Receiver/Manager over the three firms by FBNQuest Trustees Limited, a subsidiary of FBN Holdings.
The receivership according to the advertorials was reportedly due to debt recovery, with a consortium of creditor banks, including Zenith Bank, UBA, FCMB, Access Bank, Fidelity, Ecobank, Keystone, FirstBank, Sterling, Union Bank, and others, seeking to recover debts owed by the power firms.
However, the management in a statement said “the publications, contrary to a subsisting court ruling, erroneously claimed the appointment of a Receiver/Manager over KEPCO Energy Resource Nigeria Limited, NG Power-HPS Limited, and New Electricity Distribution Company, with operating companies as follows: KEPCO (Egbin Power), NG Power-HPS Limited (FIPL) and New Electricity Distribution Company (Ikeja Electric).”
“We state unequivocally and for the record that Egbin Power Plc, First Independent Power Limited, and Ikeja Electric Plc are absolutely not in Receivership, and their assets, businesses, or undertakings are not under the management of any external Receiver/Manager whatsoever,” Babatunde Osadare, Chief Legal and Regulatory Officer, Ikeja Electric, said on behalf of the power companies’ Management.
Osadare said the claims were not only false, but “represent a gross misrepresentation of facts and a malicious attempt at self-help designed to subvert the course of justice.”
According to him, in definitive rulings delivered on August 5, 2025 (Suit Nos. FHC/L/CS/1242, FHC/L/CS/1244, FHC/L/CS/1245), the Honorable Justice Akintayo Aluko of the Federal High Court in Lagos explicitly restrained the Lenders and their purported Receiver/Manager from taking any adverse actions.
Osadare said the rulings specifically prohibits the purported Receiver/Manager from: accelerating the disputed loan facility before its maturity; interfering in any manner with the assets, businesses, or undertakings of the Power Entities, including operational accounts; enforcing any share security over the assets of the Power Entities or their sponsors, based on the disputed debt; or unilaterally enforcing any finance documents related to the disputed debt.
“We therefore urge the general public, our valued customers, financial partners, regulators, and all stakeholders to completely disregard the falsehoods presented in the aforementioned This Day advertorials and any related, unfolding misleading press releases. The core matters referenced are actively being litigated and the Lenders, represented by the purported Receiver/Manager, have formally submitted to the Court’s jurisdiction,” Osadare said.
Reassuring all stakeholders, Osadare said the power companies emphatically reaffirm their steadfast commitment to the development of the nation’s Power Sector and their vital role of responsibly powering homes, communities, and businesses across the nation.
He added; “Egbin Power, First Independent Power, and Ikeja Electric remain fully operational, financially stable, and firmly under the control of their legitimate management. Our focus remains unwavering on our core mission: providing reliable electricity and driving the growth of Nigeria’s critical power sector. We have full confidence in the Nigerian judicial system to fairly resolve the underlying disputes.”
A Federal High Court in Lagos was alleged to have confirmed the appointment of Kunle Ogunba (SAN) as Receiver/Manager over the three firms.
Should the receivership be confirmed, the companies’ management and directors will lose control over assets and operations, which will now be managed by the receiver/manager appointed by the creditor banks.
