The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria has announced the sale of its 60 per cent stake in the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company, as part of ongoing efforts to offload distressed assets and strengthen debt recovery nationwide.

Speaking at a media briefing in Lagos on Thursday, AMCON Managing Director and CEO, Gbenga Alade, said the transaction followed a revised bidding process, after the corporation rejected an initial offer.

AMCON officials clarified that the remaining 40 per cent stake in IBEDC is held by the Bureau of Public Enterprises.

Alade declared the sale of IBEDC and highlighted that his leadership had rejected an earlier lowball offer before, stating, “I announce to you that Ibadan Disco has been sold. When we came in, it had already been sold. We got in and said no, it cannot be. We said they should go and submit a new offer that we were not going to sell for that (the initial offer). At the end of the day, we got almost double what Ibadan Disco was going to be sold for.”

Despite the ongoing legal dispute, Alade confirmed that AMCON would proceed with handing over IBEDC to the preferred bidder. “We have sold it… and whatever is still happening in court, we will face it,” he stated.

The transaction involving IBEDC has sparked criticism and legal challenges. In May, the African Initiative Against Abuse of Public Trust filed a lawsuit at the Federal High Court in Abuja against AMCON, IBEDC, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, and the BPE, raising concerns over the handling of the sale.

The group alleged that the sale of the Ibadan Disco was “secretive and illegal,” claiming the 60 per cent stake was grossly undervalued at $62 million, compared to its $169 million valuation in 2013.

However, Alade dismissed the allegations, stating that AMCON remains committed to transparency and will not be swayed by what he described as “skewed narratives” pushed by obligors resisting repayment.

He stressed, “These obligors damaged the Nigerian economy because they never intended to repay the loans they borrowed from various banks. Unfortunately for them, we were told of this trend before we assumed office.

“We are not deterred by these antics. Our appointment is a call to serve the motherland, and we will deliver that with all humility and sincerity of purpose.”

Alade, describing AMCON’s recovery efforts as one of the toughest challenges he has encountered, revealed that many of the agency’s most uncooperative debtors hold influential positions within government.

“Dealing with such debtors… is one of the most challenging tasks that I have ever faced in my career,” he said. He noted that AMCON would continue to pursue its mandate with “the fear of God, love of country, and… the rule of law.”