Power Sector And Other Related News Stories For Tuesday August 8th 2023
Siemens Deal to Fix Nigeria’s Power Sector Problems Faces Delay
A deal between the federal government and the German government to debottleneck Nigeria’s electricity transmission facilities could be be delayed for about five years, the global energy systems firm has said.
Some five years ago, former President Muhammadu Buhari met with the then German Chancellor, Angela Merkel and initiated the deal to overhaul and increase the operational transmission and distribution capacity of the power grid.
The agreement was basically meant to include the rehabilitation, upgrade and expansion of transmission and distribution networks and to improve power generation in three phases.
OPS Lament Rising Cost Of Power Generation
Members of the Organized Private Sector (OPS) are lamenting the rising cost of generating electricity to fuel their operations.
To this end, they disclosed that some of their members may be forced to shut down or simply relocate to other West African countries over epileptic electricity and other hurdles in the country.
Recall that the World Bank in 2021, announced that Nigeria’s economy was losing between N7 trillion and N10 trillion to epileptic power supply.
Three groups out of the five groups under the umbrella of OPS, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria(MAN), Nigeria Employers Consultative Association(NECA), and Nigeria Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), expressed the pathetic conditions under which OPS has been operating.
https://leadership.ng/ops-lament-rising-cost-of-power-generation/
Nigeria, Others Get W’Bank N254bn Solar Power Support
The World Bank, Clean Technology Fund and the Dutch Cooperation are to finance the $338.7m (N254bn at the official exchange rate of N750.6/$) solar power projects in Nigeria and other countries in West Africa.
Parties in the deal are providing the fund to support the implementation of the Regional Off-Grid Electricity Access Project for countries under the Economic Community of West Africa States.
A statement from ECOWAS made available to The PUNCH in Abuja on Monday, said it had engaged a consortium of firms to provide technical and financial assistance to companies
https://punchng.com/nigeria-others-get-wbank-n254bn-solar-power-support/
Over 7 Million Customers Still on Estimated Billing — NERC
A total of 7,017,809 Electricity customers are still on estimated billing despite various interventions by the government to bridge the metering gap, report has indicated.
Out of 12,378,243 registered customers as of 31st March 2023, only 5,360,434 have so far been metered.
According to the 2023 First quarter report released by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), in the quarter being reviewed a total of 171,107 user customers were metered.
https://tribuneonlineng.com/electricity-over-7-million-customers-still-on-estimated-billing-nerc/
Ondo Communities Will Soon Enjoy 22-Hour Electricity – Commissioner
The Ondo State Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Mrs Bamidele Ademola-Olateju, has declared that the electricity problem in the state would soon be a thing of the past.
The commissioner said since the electricity matters had been transmitted to the concurrent list, the government had been working to ensure that the communities enjoy power supply for 22 hours.
Ademola-Olateju stated this in a chat with journalists at the Secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Akure, the state capital, on Monday.
The commissioner also disclosed that the state was planning to have its electricity commission regulate the power sector.
https://punchng.com/ondo-communities-ll-soon-enjoy-22-hour-electricity-commissioner/
Nigeria Breaks Ground on 350MW Power Project in Abuja
Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has broken ground on the first phase of the 1.35GW Gwagwalada independent power plant (GIPP) in the capital city of Abuja.
Phase 1 of the Nigerian Government’s GIPP project is being developed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) and will have a 350MW capacity.
The Gwagwalada project is one of the NNPC’s flagship power projects along the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano gas pipeline corridor. Along with the 900MW Kaduna and 1.3GW Kano power projects, it is part of a cumulative capacity of 3.6GW currently in development.
As a combined cycle gas-fired power plant, the Gwagwalada project will be built on 547 hectares of land in the capital, the Premium Times of Nigeria reported.
https://www.power-technology.com/news/nigeria-gwagwalada-power/
Nigeria Struggles to Bridge Electricity Gap Despite Solar Mini Grids Solutions
With approximately 86 percent of Nigerians still lacking access to electricity, the Federal Government has faced challenges in bridging the gap with solar mini grids. Despite efforts and interventions, Nigeria is still one of the countries with the greatest electricity supply deficit, according to a report tracking progress toward Sustainable Development Goal 7.
The country has been grappling with an unreliable power supply from the grid, which is inadequate for its population of over 200 million. As of August 5, the total grid installed capacity is 13 gigawatts, with a generation capacity of 7,653 megawatts (MWs). However, peak generation has been fluctuating around 3,000-4,000 MWs, according to operational data.
