Nigeria’s transmission network will soon receive a boost as
the Niger Delta Power Holding Company Limited (NDPHC) has embarked on an
investment of over $1.5 billion (N540 billion) in relevant infrastructure.
The investment is expected to tackle the transmission
inadequacies in the power sector.The development comes as Minister of Power,
Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, says the production of electricity from
power plants across Nigeria has reached 7,001 megawatts (mw) from the 2,069mw
recorded in 2015.
The Executive Secretary of the Association of Power
Generation Companies (APGC), Dr. Joy Ogaji, had told The Guardian that even
though the generation companies (Gencos) have power generation capacity of
12,500 megawatts (mw) per day and with expansion capacity of doubling it, the
Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and the distribution companies (Discos)
have ill-equipped infrastructure to evacuate and distribute the generated
power.
But the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the
company, Chiedu Ugbo, yesterday, at The Guardian Power Summit, “Beyond
Rhetoric: Turning Nigeria’s Power Sector Value Chain Potential to Profit,”
disclosed that NDPHC has embarked on several transmission, distribution and gas
projects to bridge infrastructure gap in the sector.
Ugbo listed the transmission projects to include a 5,590 MVA
of 330/132kV transformer capacity; 313 MVA of 132/33kV transformer capacity;
2,194 km of 330kV lines; 809 km of 132kV lines; 10 new 330kV S/Stations; seven
new 132kV S/Stations and expansion of 36 existing 330kV and 132kV S/Station.
Ugbo said that NDPHC was only granted a licence to generate
electricity.“The interventions in the various segments of gas transportation,
transmission and distribution infrastructure are meant to be transferred to
appropriate licensee and statutory agencies while generation assets are to be
privatised,” he said.
On power sector achievements since 2015, at the summit,
Fashola said that the Federal Government’s effort to provide electricity was
yielding positive results.According to him, as at September 4, 2017, the
available power that could be put on the grid was 6,619 mw while the
transmission capacity was simulated at 6,700 mw, up from 5,000 mw in 2015.
“Production reached all time high of 7,001mw.”
The minister, however, put the distribution capacity at
4,600 mw. Fashola noted that the achievement could not be attributed to the
regular rainfall, which is known to contribute to the generating capacity of
hydro power plants. “I acknowledge that there will be cynics who will say it
was because of the rains. True enough, the rains contributed to the hydro power
increase, but the total hydro capacity available with the rains from Jebba, Kainji
and Shiroro as of 4th of September 2017 was about 1,000 mw. So it is the gas
thermal plants, arising from peace efforts and pipeline repairs that made up
the difference that made the total available power of 6619mw that was
produced.”
He disclosed that the government is also looking at
licensing some private power plants that have generation licences and excess
power, but no distribution licence, to grant them permits to willing buyers
especially in industrial clusters under regulations made by Nigeria Electricity
Regulatory Commission (NERC).
Fashola assured that the completion of the 240mw Afam power
plant; 10mw Katsina wind farm; 29mw Dadin Kowa hydro plant; 30mw Gurara Hydro
plant; 40mw Kashimbilla Hydro power plant; Kaduna 215mw plant; Zungeru 700 mw
Hydro plant and the Mambilla 3050mw Hydro plant would in the nearest future
increase the country’s generating capacity.
On “The Role of Niger Delta Power Holding Company Limited
(NDPHC)”, Ugbo lamented Discos’ inability to pick the load.According to him,
with the resolution of the gas supply challenge for the plants in the Western
Delta and the gas and transmission infrastructure challenge in the Eastern
Delta and improved generation, the sector is facing a new set of challenges,
which include resultant generation constraint as a result of system frequency
control.
The Commissioner, Legal, Licensing and Compliance, Dafe
Akpeneye, said that available statistics showed that about 70 to 80 per cent of
installed meters have been bypassed by customers.
To tackle the issue, Akpeneye called for a significant
investment in smart meters’ tamper proof technology.He also recommended that
all Ministries, Department and Agencies (MDAs) should be migrated to pre-paid
meters to forestall having to deal with accumulated debts.
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