Speaker of the House of Representatives,Hon.Femi Gbajabiamila,has said that the age-long failures of the power nation’s power sector should not put Nigerians in helpless state
According to him, surrendering to the power sector challenges in the country was not an option as the country needs to continually find lasting solution to the perennial problem therein.
He spoke in a remark to an investigative hearing on planned privatization of the Niger Delta Power Holding Company Plants, organized by the House of Representatives joint committees on Power, Privatization and Commercialization.
Represented by Honourable Toby Okechukwu, Deputy Minority Leader, the Speaker said inspite of the huge resources invested in the power sector, it has failed to meet the demands of Nigerian people.
He said the power sector – the policies, systems, commercial and governing interests around generating, storing, transmitting, and distributing electricity to power homes and industries is a critical component of our national economy.
He said it is an area that has been the subject of multiple interventions by governments, and billions of dollars in local and foreign investments,adding that it is also a sector that has unfortunately failed to deliver on the demand and expectations of the Nigerian people.
“Despite this history of failure, and of resources expended without result, we do not have the option of putting our hands up and walking away.Without an effectively functioning power sector, we will never be able to build the industries, power innovation and create enough jobs to cater to the large and rapidly expanding number of young people in our country. We will not be able to give our people the quality of life that allows them to dream big dreams and achieve grand aspirations.Therefore, our only option is to try to get it right, to correct the mistakes of history and make the future better for all our nation’s people.
“The Federal Government of Nigeria has proposed to sell five (5) power plants under the National Integrated Power Project (NIPP) to raise liquidity to bridge the funding gaps in the power sector, while at the same time bringing in private investors who have the expertise, the resources, and the expressed desire to make sure these plants operate optimally.Our purpose in the House of Representatives through this investigative hearing, and other interactions with stakeholders is first to review the policy process that led to this decision to understand the presumptions and expectations that have motivated this policy decision. Then we will examine the process of privatisation as designed and implemented by the relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the Federal Government of Nigeria to make sure that the process follows due process of the law. Above all else, we are here to make sure that the best interests of the Nigerian people inform every point of the process.
“To succeed in this regard, we will work with stakeholders – the private sector, labour, community leaders, and civil society. We will compel information from the government. And we will be guided by the submissions of experts from across the power sector value chain so that the recommendations that emerge from this process will be grounded in a thorough understanding of the issues and as such capable of meeting the present and future needs of our country”, the Speaker stated.
Meanwhile,the Managing Director of Niger Delta Power Holding Company, Chiedu Ugboh
has lamented the country’s integrated power plants, NIPP suffer starvation from gas supply to power their operations.
Ugboh ,who disclosed this while addressing lawmakers at an investigative hearing organized by the joint House of Representatives committee on Power, Privatization and Commercialization in Abuja,also lamented that despite the company’s capacity to generate more than 5000 megawatts of electricity, to is compelled to generate just 700 megawatts for sale due to lack of distribution capacity by the distribution companies.
“We have been to many places to look for gas, even in Geregu, we don’t have a single molecule of gas. Papalanto, the same thing. There’s no gas anywhere to run these plants which is a huge constraint”,
Speaking on the company’s existing assets and the intervention it has made, the MD said: “The NDPHC has 10 power plants with the generation capacity of over 5000 megawatts. In addition to power generation, NIPP also intervenes in transmission projects, of which we have 41 of them.”
“We added 6460MVA and 2686 kilometers of high tension kV lines for the Transmission Company of Nigeria.TCN is using these assets now but the legal transfer is yet be done to get the TCN to pay for them.All States of the federation are beneficiaries of our distribution intervention. 374 distribution projects such as injection substations, over 4000 11kva lines which once finished will be transferred to the distribution companies for use following the legal transfer is completed.
547700cookie-check Power Sector Failures Won’t Frustrate Us-Gbajabiamila
