The Niger State Board of Internal Revenue Service (NGSBIRS) has filed a suit at a Federal High Court in Minna on behalf of the Niger state Government.
The defendants in the suit are North South Power Company Limited (NSPC), Kainji Hydro Electric Plc (KHE) and Mainstream Energy Solutions (MES). Also in the suit are the Federal Ministry of Power and the Nigeria Electricity Liability Management Company (NELMC).
In the statement of claim, the state government demanded the payment of N111,725,207,100 ground rent from Kainji Hydro Electric Plc (KHE) and N21,970,920,100 from Shiroro Hydro Electric Plc (SHE).
It also prayed the court for “an order directing the defendants to pay to the plaintiff an interest on the judgment sum at the rate of 10 per cent per annum till the money is liquidated” in addition to asking the court to order the defendants to pay the cost of litigation as may be assessed.
The High Court Justice, Justice Abdullahi Muhammad Dan-Ige adjourned the case to February 19, 2024, to enable service on the defendants.
This comes not long after Governor Mohammad Umaru Bago had threatened to drag these institutions and others to court for their failure to pay taxes and other levies.