Nigeria: Fresh anxiety over core investor sale of Alscon

Anxiety over the privatisation of ALSCON has begun signalling possibilities of another botched attempt. The latest fear stems from information that Rusal, earlier disqualified from the bid process, may have received the nod of the Federal Government to acquire the plant at $160 mn, a price far below the $410 mn BFI Group Corporation of America had offered to pay as preferred bidder. The latest round of controversy has the National Assembly angered by what it called uncompetitive method adopted in the selection of Rusal as the core investor. BFI Group is said to have petitioned the US State Department for Commerce over alleged anti-American action exhibited by Nigerian Government for denying it the take over of ALSCON. Privatisation analysts expressed fears that the purported sale of ALSCON to Rusal might still fail as the proposed probe by the House of Representatives was likely to make the environment hostile for any new operator of the plant. (This Day - 05/02/05)