Photo: A coal fired power plant in Hanchuan, Hubei province, China / Getty Images

Enugu State Government has concluded plans to build a 660MW coal-fired power plant in the state.

Governor Peter Mbah disclosed this during a solidarity visit by the leadership of Organized Private Sector Nigeria (OPSN) to him at the Government House, Enugu, yesterday.

” I am pleased to inform you that in July, we will break ground for a 660MW coal-fired power plant.The outlay in terms of time for building the plant is 24 months. So, our target is to commission that power plant 24 months after the groundbreaking in July,” said Mbah.

Mbah recalled that Enugu State, under his leadership, was the first subnational to set up an electricity market, following the Constitution and Electricity Act amendments that effectively transferred power from the Exclusive List to the Concurrent List, thus paving the way for states to participate in all the power value chain, namely generation, transmission, and distribution.

The governor allayed concerns normally associated with coal, citing the low sulfur content and high calorific value of Enugu coal, standing at about 7,000 kilocalories per kilogramme.

He said the project was not a knee-jerk decision, as his administration had taken about two years to undertake the necessary studies and also secure coal assets to guarantee unhindered supplies to the plant.

•Mustafa Bello

The former Minister of Commerce and longest-serving Non-Executive Director of Zenith Bank Plc, Mustafa Bello, has been appointed as the new Chairman of the Bank.

Bello’s appointment was announced yesterday during the bank’s yearly general meeting in Lagos.

In his remark, Jim Ovia stated, “Distinguished shareholders, it gives me great pleasure to address you this morning. This meeting will be the last Annual General Meeting that I will be attending as Chairman of this Bank. In line with the CBN’s corporate governance provision, I am expected to serve for 12 years. Having served for that term, I’ll be retiring at this AGM.

For continuity, the Board met and nominated Engineer Mustafa Bello as the next Chairman.

Engr Bello is the longest-serving Board Member and has a good understanding of the Bank. This appointment has been approved by the Central Bank.

I thank you for supporting me for this tenure. I hope you give him the same support that you gave me. Thank you and God bless Zenith Bank.”

Zenith Bank Plc has announced the retirement of its founder and Group Chairman, Jim Ovia, following the expiration of his tenure.

Ovia, who founded Zenith Bank in 1990, has played a central role in the institution’s growth into one of Nigeria’s leading financial services providers.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the bank said Ovia stepped down after completing the mandatory 12-year tenure as a non-executive director and chairman, in line with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) corporate governance guidelines.

The policy limits the tenure of non-executive directors in financial institutions to promote board renewal and strengthen governance standards within the banking sector.