The House of Representatives Committee on Water Resources has urged the Abuja Power Company to withdraw the pending litigation against the Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation in an effort to reach an out-of-court settlement.

APCL petitioned the committee over a dispute with the ministry regarding the proposed Gurara II Hydropower Project in Niger.

Chairman of the committee, Sada Soli, appealed to APCL to work with the ministry to achieve a peaceful outcome by withdrawing the case from court.

Mr Soli, who emphasised the imperatives of a  peaceful settlement, said it was for national progress and development.

“I want to appeal to APCL to withdraw the case in court, and I assure you of a meaningful outcome,” he said.

The chairman also appealed to the ministry to reciprocate any peaceful steps taken by the APCL.

The minister, Joseph Utsev, insisted that  the ministry had no contract with APCL. According to Mr Utsey, the ministry is not aware of any contract with APCL.

Mr Utsev said the project was awarded through a selective process in accordance with Nigeria’s extant procurement laws.

He, however, aligned himself with the committee by asking APCL to embrace an out-of-court settlement, pledging to look into their verifiable claims.

APCL’s counsel, Oluwemimo Ogunde, accused the ministry of denying the company’s rights to the detriment of national interest.

Mr Ogunde said the ministry, in connivance with Niger government, breached the public-private partnership law by denying them the water right to generate and distribute power.

According to him, ACPL has invested significant funds in the project, only to be denied and another company granted the concession.  

(NAN)