Power Sector And Other Related News Stories For Monday December 18th 2023
Changing Ownership of Discos Won’t Solve Nigeria’s Erratic Electricity Problem, Power Sector Stakeholders Say
Power sector players in the country on Sunday told the federal government that changing the ownership of the electricity Distribution Companies (Discos) will not resolve Nigeria’s power supply problems.
Minister of Power, Mr Adebayo Adelabu, had last week advocated the sale of gas-to-power in naira to eliminate the volatility occasioned by the transactions being done in dollars.
But stakeholders at the maiden edition of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) Market Participants and Stakeholders Roundtable in Abuja, attended by over 300 professionals, said implementing a cost-reflective tariff regime was necessary.
Participants at the seminar included academics, industry practitioners, policy makers, and regulators.
Positive Developments in Nigeria’s Ailing Electricity Sector
The reality about our electricity situation is that we cannot have a stable electricity supply system through top down regulation. That unsustainable and unproductive system has kept our electricity system down for years; and by extension, obstructed the rapid development of the country over the years.
Simply put, our electricity supply challenges over the years are the result of the centralised model we operated for years. Until certain changes were made recently, apparently not yet well-known to many Nigerians.
https://guardian.ng/opinion/letters/positive-developments-in-nigerias-ailing-electricity-sector/
Consumers Pay N267.6bn For Electricity as Generation Drops by 4%
CONSUMERS paid N267.61 billion for electricity in the third quarter of 2023, the latest report from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, has indicated.
NERC in its third quarter report released at the weekend disclosed that due to the absence of a cost reflective tariff, the Federal Government incurred a subsidy cost of N204.59 billion over the period.
According to the Commission, the total revenue collected by all DisCos in 2023/Q3 was N267.61billion out of the N349.55 billion that was billed to customers which translated to a collection efficiency of 76.56 percent.
https://www.vanguardngr.com/2023/12/consumers-pay-n267-6bn-for-electricity-as-generation-drops-by-4/
Electricity Subsidy Gulps N376bn, Consumers Pay N783bn
The Federal Government spent N375.8bn on electricity subsidy between January and September this year, as power consumers paid a total of N782.6bn for the commodity during the same period, it was gathered on Sunday.
The latest power subsidy figures obtained in Abuja from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, an agency of the Federal Government, showed that the government subsidised electricity in the first, second and third quarters of 2023.
It was also gathered that power distribution companies billed electricity users a total of N1.06tn nationwide during the nine-month period, but collected N782.6bn despite the blackouts in many parts of Nigeria.
https://punchng.com/electricity-subsidy-gulps-n376bn-consumers-pay-n783bn/
World Bank Approves $750m to Boost Renewable Energy in Nigeria
In a bid to expand access to clean energy for 17.5 million Nigerians, the World Bank has approved the Nigeria Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up (DARES) project, being financed by $750 million International Development Association (IDA) credit and would leverage over $1 billion of private capital and significant parallel financing from development partners.
The financing from development partners include $100 million from the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet and $200 million from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
https://rea.gov.ng/world-bank-approves-750m-boost-renewable-energy-nigeria/
After Fire Incident, TCN Says Maryland/Ikorodu Substation Equipment Was Manufactured in 1983
The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has said that the Maryland/Ikorodu substation equipment was manufactured in 1983.
This is according to a recent statement signed by the General Manager for Public Affairs, Ndidi Mbah.
The TCN said that the Maryland/Ikorodu substation fire which occurred over the weekend, has been put out and rehabilitation of the substation has started.
The company said that due to ageing and insulation failure, the explosion happened, and the fire started.
