Oscarline Onwuemenyi
22 December 2017, Sweetcrude, Abuja – The National Council on Privatisation (NCP) on Thursday approved the privatisation of five subsidiaries of the Nigerian Mining Corporation, NMC.
A statement signed by the spokesman for the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) Mr. Chukwuma Nwokoh, said the approval was given by the council at its 4th and final meeting in 2017 held on December 15, 2017.
Mr. Nwokoh said the approved subsidiaries, which were five of the 23 that remained to be sold, include Naraguta Bricks and Clay Company to be sold to University of Jos at about N45 million and Maiduguri Bricks and Clay Company to Gargam International Services Ltd. at the bid price of N63 million.
Others include NIMCO Terrazzo Company Limited to Alheri (JJ) Nigeria Limited at about N15.3 million; Gano Quarry to A.A Y International Mining Company Limited at about N21.7million, and Kujama Quarry to Yusuf Mariri Trading Company Limited at about N20.55 million.
The BPE spokesperson said the Technical Committee of the NCP had opened the financial bids of the pre-qualified prospective core investors for these enterprises at a public ceremony held at the BPE Conference Room on October 24, 2017.
The NCP, which is chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, had noted that the move to privatise the remaining subsidiary companies was vital, as the plant and equipment had outlived their economic life as a result of incessant vandalism and theft over the years.
“The 23 subsidiaries of the NMC had ceased operations since the late 1980s, resulting in their closure, with staff disengaged in 2004 by the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development,” Nwokoh said.
It was gathered that a few of the workers were however retained to provide skeletal services to the company, including security of some of the equipment and company property.
Nwokoh also noted that, during the meeting, the NCP approved the pre-qualification of five firms which should be issued Request for Proposals (RFPs) with respect to the engagement of transaction advisers.
The process is for the partial commercialisation of the River Basin Development Authorities, RBDAs in the country.
The affected firms included Agric-Africa Consultants, Halcrow Infrastructure, CPCS, Thomas Macaulay Capital, and Feedback Infrastructure Services.
Similarly, the council approved that RFPs be issued to the three firms that met the pre-qualification scores following the evaluation of Expressions of Interest, EOIs, for the engagement of transaction advisers.
This, it added is for the partial commercialisation of the Nigeria National Parks Service and concession of eco-tourism activities in three selected national parks.
The three firms include African Wildlife Foundation, IOS, Partners/IWorld/Ecoplannet, and CPCS.
