FG canvasses investment on small unit power plants, says lesser units hasten achieving goals

ABUJA (Federal Ministry of Power Report)

The Nigerian Government has called on Poland to deploy its technological expertise into Nigeria’s power sector in the country’s quest for quicker and easier solution to its power challenge. This, it said can be done through setting up power plants for delivery of smaller megawatts of electricity to the Nigerian people in the near future.

The Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Power, Godknows Igali, who spoke lately at a meeting with the Polish delegation led by its Minister of Economy, Andrzej Dycha stated that the investment aims at providing a win-win situation for both parties. Adding, the investors will get their turnover quickly with Nigeria enjoying increase in power output instantly.

According to Igali, the Nigerian electricity value – chain has been suffering from long years of neglect and underfunding and this has informed the Administration’s vigorous move for privatization. He further explained that having seen the transformation in the banking and telecoms industries as a result of privatization, there was need to inject private sector dynamism into the system.

He also noted that since the exercise which took place about twenty months ago, there has been a tremendous increase in the nation’s power sector output which would have been noticed unquestionably, but for the incessant vandalism of gas pipelines. “The Ughelli Power Station for example has since increased its generation capacity from a paltry 115 megawatts to 650 megawatts and another target of 850 megawatts is expected in the months ahead,” he noted.

“The country has enough coal deposits to provide 5,000 megawatts of power from coal. The government will provide all the necessary backing for the take-off of the deal. All permits and licenses would be fast-tracked, in order to ensure seamless realization of the projects.”

Speaking earlier, the leader of the delegation, Andrzej Dycha stated that Poland is the fastest developing economy in Europe now and has developed superior technology for coal and renewable energy which it wants to collaborate with the Nigerian Government.

Andrzej Dycha said that the purpose is to ensure that in the years to come, development in the area of energy will result to economic transformation for the nation.