Ibom Power Company Limited (IPC) has terminated the appointment of some of its workers, a move the affected staff describe as a sack, while the company insists it merely allowed fixed-term contracts to lapse amid deepening liquidity and gas supply challenges in Nigeria’s power sector.
Some of the affected workers told this newspaper that they had worked for the state-owned power firm for more than 10 years and are owed three months’ salary.
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In a letter dated 12 December and titled “Letter of disengagement/ end of contract,” the company informed the workers that their engagement would end at the close of the year.
“We write to formally notify you that your contract with Ibom Power Company Limited (IPC) will end on 31 December 2025.
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“Consequently, all your financial entitlements arising from the said contract will be fully settled on or before 31 January 2026 in conformity with applicable terms,” the letter read.
The letter was signed by the company’s Secretary and Head of Corporate Services, Ime Asibong.
Some of the sacked staff members told PREMIUM TIMES on Monday that they were invited to the office on Monday, where their sack letters were given to them.
This newspaper gathered that at least 15 staff members from Ikot Abasi (the company’s operational base) and Uyo offices are affected.
“No prior notice. We were invited on Sunday to come to the office on Monday. To our surprise, sack letters were shared to us,” one of the workers said.
‘Nobody is sacked’ — Management
Responding to enquiries from PREMIUM TIMES, the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Ibom Power Company, Camellius Umoh, rejected claims that workers were sacked.
“There’s nothing like sacking. Nobody is sacked. Every company runs a bilateral system: staff members and people on contract service,” he said.
Mr Umoh explained that those disengaged were on one-year fixed-term contracts, which expired at the end of December.
“The people were on a fixed-term contract for one year. A fixed term is obtained when you desire that people come and sort out a particular problem. That contract ends this December,” he said.
He added that the decision was influenced by severe financial and operational constraints facing the company.
Gas shortage, liquidity crisis
According to Mr Umoh, the company’s inability to generate power due to gas shortages has crippled its finances.
“Without a doubt, the liquidity problem in the power sector is known to everybody. The federal government is owing, and of course, by concomitant logic, we (IPC) have not also paid Accugas,” he said.
Accugas, which is a part of the Seven Energy Group, is a midstream business focused on sales and marketing, processing, and distribution of gas to the domestic Nigerian market.
Mr Umoh said the company had been without a gas supply for about four months, making power generation impossible.
“In a typical company that is production-based, if you’re not producing, there is no way you can have money to run the system,” he said.
He added: “Gas is like petrol in a car. If there is no gas in the turbines, nothing can be generated, and when you don’t generate power, there’s no payment.”
He stressed that the gas challenge is widespread across Nigeria’s power generation companies.
“Gas has been a perennial problem in the company, and all gas suppliers are being owed big time across (power) generation companies in Nigeria,” he said, adding that, “At least three generation companies have relocated their turbines from their states because of gas.”
On unpaid salaries and long service
Some of the disengaged workers said they were owed three months’ salary and expressed frustration that staff who had served the company for over a decade were being disengaged as contract workers.
Addressing this, Mr Umoh said the company acted to avoid worsening salary arrears.
“The idea was that we don’t want to owe. Like any construction company, they’ve shut down for Christmas. The idea was that the office is open in January, and all benefits are tidied up, and the due entitlement would be paid,” he said.
On claims of long years of service, he added: “The fact that those required services were rolled over does not confer a tenureship on that service.”
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Background: power politics and history
The development comes about a year after Akwa Ibom State Governor, Umo Eno, fired a former managing director of the company, Meyen Etukudo, following a major power outage in the state.
At the time, Mr Etukudo explained that the blackout was caused by the company’s inability to settle gas debts owed to Savannah Energy, the parent company of Accugas. This gas supplier feeds Ibom Power’s turbines.
Governor Eno had vowed to investigate the company, but a year later, nothing has been reported about this.
Also, a year after Mr Etukudo was fired, the new management of the company still blamed the gas cut to the company on the inability to settle the debts owed to the gas company.
Ibom Power Company was established during the administration of former Governor Victor Attah as part of efforts to boost electricity supply and industrial development in Akwa Ibom State.
Mr Umoh told PREMIUM TIMES that the benefits of the disengaged staff members will be settled on or before the end of January next year.
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