BENIN CITY – The Edo State Government has no ownership stake in the Ossiomo Power Project and is only a customer of the privately owned facility, the Managing Director of the Edo State Electrification Agency, Hon. Saturday Egbadon, has said.
Egbadon made the clarification on Tuesday at a stakeholders’ meeting held at the John Odigie-Oyegun Public Service Academy (JOOPSA), Benin City, following the recent shutdown of operations at the Ossiomo Power Plant in Ologbo.
According to him, the project was established under the immediate past administration as a private venture, with the state government playing no role beyond being a subscriber.
He stressed that the government has no equity interest in the company and therefore cannot be held responsible for its closure.
“The government of Edo State is simply a customer of Ossiomo Power, as established by the last administration.
“The current shutdown is the outcome of a commercial dispute between Ossiomo Power and its Chinese partner, CCETC, not an action of the state government,” Egbadon said.
He explained that the plant’s management did not notify Governor Monday Okpebholo before halting operations, a decision which cut power to government facilities, hospitals, and businesses since September 1, 2025.
To address the disruption, the state government has engaged the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) to assume supply on Ossiomo’s 11KV lines, including the State Secretariat, Government House, major hospitals, and private consumers.
Egbadon commended BEDC for stepping in swiftly, while BEDC’s Acting Chief Technical Officer, Engr. Kingsley Atseyinku, assured that affected customers would be migrated to Band A feeders with 20–24 hours daily supply.
Some Ossiomo subscribers at the meeting welcomed the arrangement.
Barrister Adesuwa Omonuwa, a long-time customer, said: “I have been with Ossiomo from inception and was satisfied before these problems emerged. Today’s meeting has given us hope, and if all promises are kept, customers will no longer endure days of blackout.”
The 95MW Ossiomo plant had previously supplied electricity to government offices, hotels, industries, the NUJ Secretariat, and street lighting in parts of Benin City.
