The Federal Government says it has paid N1.23tn out of the N3.3tn debt owed to gas suppliers.

The Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, disclosed this while briefing State House correspondents shortly after Wednesday’s Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the Council Chamber of the State House, Abuja.

He said the payment was part of ongoing efforts to resolve liquidity and debt challenges in the power sector, which had constrained the supply of feedstock gas to generation companies.

“So far, we have been able to pay N1.23tn out of the N3.3tn debt owed to the GenCos, which has been considered a challenge in respect of supply of feedstock gas,” he stated.

Tegbe added that beyond the debt payments, the government was also working to optimise existing assets in the sector and build long-term resilience into the national grid through targeted investment in transmission infrastructure.

The Minister said the government planned to expand transmission capacity from the current 5,000 megawatts to approximately 19,000 megawatts.

“We plan to build resilience into the grid by building out and investing in grid expansion.

“The intention is to upgrade transmission capacity from 5,000 megawatts today to about 19,000 megawatts,” he said. (PUNCH)