Femi Otedola’s Geregu Power lifts Q3 profit to ₦11.2 billion

Femi Otedola’s power producer, Geregu Power Plc, reported a sharp third-quarter profit jump as stronger electricity sales and capacity payments offset rising input costs.

Pre-tax profit for the three months to September climbed 82% to ₦11.2 billion ($7.62 million), according to unaudited figures released Saturday. Quarterly revenue advanced 37% to ₦43.8 billion ($29.80 million), lifting nine-month revenue to ₦131.5 billion ($89.46 million).

The sales mix did most of the heavy lifting. Energy sales rose nearly 40% to ₦28.8 billion ($19.59 million), while capacity charges increased 33% to ₦15.1 billion ($10.27 million) on improved plant availability and grid offtake. Costs also moved higher: cost of sales jumped 53% to ₦28.6 billion ($19.46 million), reflecting pricier gas supply and transport — familiar pain points across Nigeria’s generation fleet.

Even with that squeeze, operating profit almost doubled to ₦12.5 billion ($8.50 million), helped by steadier collections from distribution companies and tighter cost control outside fuel and logistics.

The balance sheet crept higher. Total assets stood at ₦273.2 billion ($185.85 million) at end-September, up from ₦243.5 billion ($165.65 million) in December 2024. Trade receivables remained the biggest line item — a reminder that liquidity across the power value chain still depends on timely remittances from buyers.

For Otedola, who steered Geregu to the Nigerian Exchange in 2022 and has shifted his portfolio toward energy infrastructure and finance, the numbers extend a post-listing run built on disciplined generation and predictable capacity income. Geregu’s model — sell dispatched megawatt-hours, earn for available capacity, keep plants running — is straightforward; executing it inside Nigeria’s complex market is not. Gas invoicing, currency swings and transmission bottlenecks still test margins.

Nine-month pre-tax profit reached ₦37.5 billion ($25.51 million). With the company already close to last year’s full-year tally, investors will watch whether the fourth quarter can hold the line on fuel costs and collections.

Otedola has framed power as a long-cycle bet on industrial demand. This quarter’s print backs that view: higher output and dependable capacity fees can outrun cost inflation — provided cash keeps flowing through the system and gas shows up when scheduled.