Lagos/Abuja — A former Head of State, Chief Ernest Shonekan, has revealed that Nigeria has so far spent over $10 billion in an effort at improving the power situation in the country

Shonekan, who is also the Chairman, Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), made the revelation on Wednesday in Lagos at the 3rd Power Solutions Power Conference organised by PowerCap Limited.

Shonekan, however, said in spite of the quantum of government investment in the sector, its performance had continued to be an embarrassment.

According to him, the problem of the power sector was compounded by poor planning and the inability to bridge the gap between capacity level and current demand, thereby necessitating epileptic supply of power in the country in recent times.

Shonekan said there was need for the country to improve the current power generation, adding that the desire was more challenging, given the need of the nation to be among the best 20 economies in the world by 2020.

He added that the current administration's plan to partner with the private sector in reworking the nation's power industry through the Public-Private Participation (PPP) was a welcome development.

He, however, advocated that a coherent regulatory framework must be put in place by the Federal Government in order to ensure a sustainable PPP.

He said, "We must all commit ourselves to address the issue of corruption, if we are to create a PPP that can be internationally competitive. We must ensure that our process conform to international procedures.

"All ministries and parastatals should adhere strictly to the provision of due process. The Chairman and commissioners in National Electricity Regulatory Agency (NERC) must adhere to the oath of office as we strive to build an enduring PPP market."

He said the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) would be at the forefront of ensuring a working relationship between government and the private sector in the supply chain.

Meanwhile, the Federal Government for the umpteenth time yesterday assured that President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua's promise of 6,000 megawatts of electricity generation by the end of the year would surely be realised.

The assurance came even as the Federal Executive Council (FEC) approved new contracts totalling N6.7 billion for power and construction of prisons headquarters complex.

Briefing the press at the end of the 36th FEC meeting in Abuja, Minister of State for Power, Arc. Nuhu Somo Wya, said at the moment the country was enjoying a total of 2,450 megawatts, despite that it had the capacity to generate 5,200 megawatts as of today if the twin challenges of water and gas supply were addressed.

In his words, "The 6,000 megawatts is a target. It is a task that must be won. We are on course. We are making progress. As of today, we have 5,200 megawatts capacity available. The issue of power is peculiar. It is not something you solve overnight.

"In the power sector, there are two challenges. There is the issue of water level. It is normally towards the end of the year that we have full capacity. Now, we have low capacity in our dams.

"The second challenge is that of gas supply. And our generation in the sector is over 70 per cent gas thermal supply. In the eastern side, we have enough gas but not the stations to use them. In the western side, which is in the Niger Delta to Lagos axis, this is under serious challenge. But the amnesty is yielding very positive result. We are getting our contractors back on site to work on the damaged pipelines. There is hope these pipelines would be repaired.

"I want Nigerians to give us a chance because never in the history of Nigeria have we had such massive efforts in the power sector. I assure Nigerians that we mean business this time around. With the NIPP (National Independent Power Project), we are going to generate 4,600 megawatts. As of today, a total of 2,450 is being generated and distributed".

On the prison complex, the Federal Government reviewed upward the initial cost of the construction of the nation's prison headquarters office complex to N2.134 billion, from the previous sum of N1.696 billion awarded in 2005.

Minister of Information and Communications, Prof. Dora Akunyili, and her Interior counterpart, Dr Shetima Mustapha, said the contract's implementation was delayed due to hitches in the allocation of land, paucity of funds and expansion of scope of work, all of which necessitated the review of the contract sum.