The Uganda Securities Exchange (USE) has suspended UMEME following the expiry of electricity distribution concession agreement and subsequent handover to Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (UEDCL).
Yesterday, government paid US$118 million (Shs 432.677 billion) to UMEME following the expiry of concession agreement.
“USE hereby informs all investors and the general public that the counter of UMEME Limited which is listed on the Main Investment Market Segment of the USE has been temporarily suspended,” USE said.
The involuntary suspension of the counter by the USE is made in the interest of investor protection and maintaining transparency of the market. The suspension is on the basis of the ongoing public speculations regarding the end of the UMEME concession and determination of the final buy out amount.
The suspension took effect from Monday March 31, 2025 for a period of two weeks to enable the company address key concerns regarding price sensitive information and to mitigate the potential impact of the end of the concession period.
“During the suspension period, the Company shall continue to comply with all the continuous listing obligations applicable to it. In addition, the company shall submit a progress report to the Exchange regarding the current state of the affairs of the company and any proposition,” USE said.
Established in 1948, the Uganda Electricity Board (UEB), the defunct government-owned electrical utility company, was charged with the generation and distribution of power. During that time, there were 3,263 customers connected to the national grid.
Through various reforms, UEB was disbanded, leading to the establishment of the Uganda Electricity Generation Company Limited (UEGCL), the Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited (UETCL), and the Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (UEDCL). The three entities are in charge of electricity generation, transmission, and distribution, respectively.
While the government retained transmission under UETCL, it handed the concessions for electricity generation and distribution to private companies. Umeme took the distribution concession in 2005. Despite inheriting losses as high as 38%, Umeme improved the reliability of the power, unlike in the past.
