• Lagos Governor , Babajide Sanwo-Olu

Lagos State has been ranked emerging as the most indebted state in Nigeria, owing creditors a total of N1.22 trillion and $1.17 billion in domestic and external debts, respectively,

In its Q4 2025 domestic and external debt report, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said that the country’s total debt stock, comprising domestic and external debt, rose from N153.29 trillion or $103.94 billion in Q3 2025 to N159.28 trillion or $110.97 billion in Q4 2025.

The report said this represented an increase of 3.90 per cent on a quarter-on-quarter basis, adding that total external debt stood at N74.43 trillion, while total domestic debt was N84.85 trillion in Q4 2025.

The share of external debt, in naira value, was 46.73 per cent in Q4 2025, while the share of domestic debt, also in naira value, stood at 53.27 per cent of total public debt.

While Lagos State had the highest domestic debt in Q4 2025 with N1.22 trillion, Rivers came second with N378.81 billion, while Jigawa State recorded the lowest with N1.60 billion, followed by Ondo with N8.42 billion.

Lagos State also recorded the highest external debt over the reference period with $1.17 billion, followed by Kaduna with $684.29 million, while the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) had the lowest with $26.80 million, followed by Zamfara with $41.93 million, the NBS said.

According to the bureau, other heavily indebted states are Bauchi with $220.57 million and N156.05 billion as external and domestic debts respectively;

Delta with $63.42 million and N248.83 billion as external and domestic debts respectively; and Enugu with $99.88 million and N157.60 billion as external and domestic debts, respectively.

Aliko Dangote, the billionaire behind Africa’s largest industrial conglomerate, is determined to end Nigeria’s epileptic power sector with a plan to generate 20,000 megawatts of electricity.

Dangote’s entry into the sector follows a string of failed promises from the Nigerian government.

Adebayo Adelabu, ex-Power Minister, has repeatedly missed deadlines to stabilise the grid at even 6,000 megawatts, a fraction of what Dangote is now proposing.

“We are now going into power… 20,000 megawatts,” said Dangote during a conversation with International Finance Corporation Managing Director Makhtar Diop, adding that Africa’s most pressing needs remain energy, fertilisers, and industrial inputs.

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.