|
|
Nigeria: FG Needs $120bn to Achieve Steady Power Supply
 |
|
|||||||||
|
||||||||||
Leadership (Abuja)
1 May 2008
Posted to the web 1 May 2008
Betrand Nwankwo
Abuja
Minister and deputy chairman, National Planning Commission, Senator Sanusi Daggash has said that Nigeria requires about $120 billion to achieve steady and uninterrupted power supply by the year 2020.
He stated at the first annual general meeting of the National Association of Energy Economic/International Association of Energy Economics which ended yesterday in Abuja, the minister disclosed that the said amount needed to be invested in the power sector in the next 12 years to address the epileptic power supply in Nigeria.
Speaking through his technical assistance, Hon Levi Oguike, the minister the amount would be invested in infrastructure to improve power supply. Given the breakdown of the figure, Daggash stated that $10 billion is required annually to improve the troubled power from 2008 till 2020, which is a period of 12 years for Nigerians to enjoy steady and uninterrupted power sully. Also speaking, the director general and chief executive officer of Energy Commission of Nigeria, Prof S.A. Sambo painted a ugly picture of the power plants in Nigeria.
He stated that the power plants in Nigeria were installed in 1960, revealing that since then no new machine was installed and no proper maintenance was carried in the plants since there were installed. Represented by the Engr Johnson Oluyemi, the ECN boss disclosed that every power plant has 25 years life spans, which the Nigerian plants have since passed.
According Prof Sambo, since something urgent must be done to upgrade the plants, since the ones built in since 1960 have passed its life span. He faulted the commissioning of the new power plants built by the past administration, stating that those plants were commissioned without the completion of the power lines.
According to Sambo, the administration should have waited for the power lines to be completed before commissioning the new power plants. Speaking further, the ECN chief executive revealed that there is a cartel that exists in the oil industry that is frustrating government's effort at repositioning the sector.
He said that the only way to encourage independent power producers to invest in the power sector is the electricity tariff so that they can be sure of recouping their investment.
Speaking, Sambo suggested that salary of workers in the energy industry should be harmonised. He faulted the situation where the workers in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation earn more that a staff of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria.
"Harmonise the salary of the energy workers so that all of them will receive the salary", he said. In his contribution, director energy information and data division, center for energy studies, Louisiana State University, United States of America, Prof Omowumi Ildare stated that Nigeria should move away from crude and natural exportation to developing the Nigerian market.
|
He advised the Federal Government to use the revenue realised from oil to develop other sectors of the country.
From the comment of Senator daggash it is obviuos that the Govt can not provide electricity this century.First 2006, then 2007 and now 2020,2050,2059. The solution is to separate electricity production and distribution into Industrial and household.Industrial electricity production and distribution shoild be privatised, while Household production should be privatised and distribution handed over to individual states. The FGN wants borrow $4b, AFC offers $4B, Govt probing AFC, Govt needs $120b, I think this Govt is confused, and they are playing tricks with our intellence. Providing electricity is not that difficult.
This forecast by the minister has no background projection of industry growth to use the power. The minister has picked his figure from the air. Planning for a country is NEVER, NEVER done in this fashion. This is NOT expected from an educated minister of state. THERE IS JUST NO BASIS! THE WORLD IS WATCHING!
I thought the country, Nigeria will move forward as soon as we got into democracy, especially in electricity supply. With the recent statements by Senator Daggash that we cannot achieve unintterrupted power supply until 2020, he was simply saying that Nigeria can never achieve this. He also said he needed $120b to achieve it. I am sure Ghana, who achieved what we are planning to achieve in 2020 over 10 years ago did not have as much resources as Nigeria had. God has provided what we need to make every Nigerian has access to a steady electricity supply. If Senator... [Read Full Text]
It is unreal that Nigeria as a country is still in the same league as other third World country like Zimbabwe when we should be in the up "coming league" of South Africa and India. Some of our so called leaders or Elders have no clue or Experience/knowledge on how country like our should be run.
They have little or no Management experience and neither we they expose to outside world to see what is going on in other part of the world. It is time we Nigerians in the dispora start to see who we can help and developed... [Read Full Text]
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Copyright © 2008 Leadership. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections -- or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Make allAfrica.com your home page | RSS Feed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Top | Site Guide | Who We Are | Advertising | Search | Subscribe | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Questions or Comments? Contact us. Read our Privacy Statement. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
