Transcorp Group’s Market Value Hits $3bn from N20bn in 2011

•Elumelu wants FG’s indebtedness to power companies settled, barriers removed to pave way for country’s development

James Emejo in Abuja

Chairman, Transnational Corporation Plc (Transcorp Group), Mr. Tony Elumelu, yesterday disclosed that the combined market capitalisation of Transcorp Group of Companies currently stood at $3 billion (N4.5 trillion).

That excludes Trans Afam Power Limited, and Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC), which are likely to be publicly listed in future.

Speaking at the 2024 Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the group in Abuja, Elumelu said the company was valued at less than N20 billion when it was taken over in 2011.

He said the new management had been able to create immense value for shareholders over the years.

He said, “So, my message for shareholders and investing public at large is come join the transport group and benefit and enjoy what the shareholders already have here.

“When we took over this company in 2011, the market cap of Transcorp was less than $2 billion. Today, the group market cap is over 4.5 trillion.

“The company was founded in 2004. By the time we took over the company in 2011, we had not paid dividends.”

Elumelu added, “But since we took over the company, we have consistently paid dividends to shareholders. We just declared one year of dividends for 2024.

“And 2025 will definitely be better than 2024. So, we are doing what we are excited to do, which is transforming companies and business and creating more shareholders.

“So, to shareholders of Transcorp, they are very excited and to investing public, it’s time to come on board.”

Elumelu stressed that access to electricity remained critical for the country’s development.

He said, “We believe that to fix Nigeria, we must fix power. And we are great supporters of President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda. We know that to grow a $1 trillion economy, electricity must be fixed. That is not the case today.

He expressed disappointment that even though the president directed last year that all impediments to progress in the power sector should be removed, no one heeded the presidential directive.

Elumelu said, “But I am afraid to say that critical people who should have to see the president’s vision come alive are afraid to do so.

“May I use this opportunity to call on them to help translate the president’s idea to action.

“Nigerians need improvement in access to electricity. The power sector is owed a lot of money.”

According to him, Transcorp Group alone is owed over $400 million (over N600 billion) to date.

“We want this paid so that we can help actualise the president’s vision for improving electricity supply to Nigeria,” he said.

Elumelu further hinted on the group’s potential incursion into other critical sectors of the economy, especially agriculture.

He told journalists, “Shareholders are excited and happy to help transform Nigerian economy. And so, they want us to explore possibilities of going to critical sectors of the economy that will help us to complement what President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the government is doing to make life better for everyone.

“So, they talked about agriculture, because agriculture creates employment for people. And they talked about the wider energy sector issues.”

Elumelu said the power sector was vital to Nigeria’s sustainable socio-economic development.

He disclosed that in 2024, industry stakeholders worked together to tackle sector-wide issues.  This resulted in some significant milestones enabled by the signing of the Electricity Act, the continued implementation of Service-Based Tariff and the removal of the electricity subsidy for Band-A consumers, the initiation of the transition to state-level regulation, Elumelu said.

Nonetheless, he stated that challenges, including gas supply limitations, grid instability and power offtake capacity limitation continued to persist, alongside the huge debt to the sector.

He said, “We, nonetheless, remain committed to revolutionising the power sector in Nigeria, guided by our Africapitalism ethos.

“Reflecting this commitment, in 2024, we recovered an additional 125MW generating capacity at our power plant in Ughelli.

“Working with the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) and GE, we successfully completed six out of the eight Fost Power turbines in Afam, Rivers State, bringing an additional 180MW of available capacity to Nigerians, subject to gas availability.”

President/Group Chief Executive, Transnational Corporation Plc (Transcorp Group), Dr. Owen Omogiafo, said Transcorp Group delivered outstanding financial results in 2024, underscoring its resilience and strategic discipline.

Omogiafo said revenue grew by 107 per cent to N408 billion, led by a 124 per cent increase in Transcorp  Power revenue and a 69 per cent rise in hospitality earnings.

According to her, Profit Before Tax (PBT) rose by 132 per cent to N136.7 billion, while Profit After Tax (PAT) surged by 188 per cent to 194.1 billion.

Return on Equity (ROE) increased from 24.90 per cent to 52.94 per cent, while Net Profit Margin improved to 23.07 per cent, reflecting higher efficiency and profitability.

Furthermore, total assets rose by 42 per cent to 4751.6 billion, while foreign exchange exposure was significantly reduced, culminating in the full repayment of Transcorp Power’s $215 million FX acquisition loan by January 2024.

Owen said, “These results affirm the strength of our diversified portfolio and the effectiveness of our value-driven strategy.

“We have been able to not just maintain but surpass international standards and we continue to be one of the best-run built-in hotels across the world.

“And we manage our operating expenses and we are still turning a very good profit and creating value for our shareholders.

“And we are expanding our energy space, we just keep on going. So who are we in Transcorp? We are just value creators.

“And we believe that we are serving the stakeholders who believe in us.”