Igbeaku Orji writing from Umuahia examines the economic effects of uninterupted and electricity supply
The critical significance of electricity supply to the economic and social development of any society cannot be overemphasised. For years, Nigeria has grappled with the malaise of incessant blackout. The consequence is the grounding or relocation of many companies. It also affected the establishment of new companies with the attendant unemployment and poverty. The prospect of uninterrupted electricity supply therefore would have a salutary effect on the economic and social life of the people. It is against this background that Geometric Power Ltd, Aba was established.
Typical example of power stationAba was favoured because of its viability in terms of population and economic activity. The indigenous entrepreneurial skill in Aba is already well known. It had attracted local and international attention; all it required to blossom was a stable and affordable power supply.
The groundbreaking ceremony of the Geometric Power Ltd in Aba, the commercial hub of South East Nigeria, was one of the earliest assignments performed by Governor Theodore Orji in 2007. Professor Barth Nnaji, chairman of Geometric Power and the immediate past Minister of Power, having successfully pioneered private/indigenous initiative on stable power supply in Abuja led a consortium of banks and investors for the project. The Aba Integrated Power Project (IPP) is one of its kind in the South East and Nigeria as a whole. The failure of public power supply obviously gave vent to the private initiative. The establishment of the plant signaled a significant step towards ending epileptic power supply and ushering in a new era in industrial and technological growth. It was therefore received with great expectation and relief among the people.
Professor Nnaji’s speech at the groundbreaking ceremony and at other fora painted the picture of a city where the electric supply would not be interrupted, a city where generators, either for industrial/commercial or domestic purposes would be a thing of the past. It would mark the beginning of true industrialisation of Aba as a model of what would soon be replicated in the nation in general in a short time. But some years after its completion the plant is yet to commence operation of providing uninterrupted power supply to Aba and its environs in the first place and Nnewi and the rest of the South East. Its commissioning has been put off several times without convincing explanation. Ironically, even the complex runs on generator.
The excitement that greeted the groundbreaking ceremony is gradually giving way to despair and disappointment as months roll into years and the service provision still as remote. What could stall the plant’s service delivery years after its completion? Could it be bureaucracy, technical incompetence or sabotage? It has been speculated in some quarters that the formal commencement of operations of the plant may have been caught in the characteristic bureaucratic snafu of Nigeria. Others even hazard the conclusion that giving the official nod for Geometric Power would confer some economic advantage to a section of the country over the others.
How long will Aba wait to get the uninterrupted power supply? In fact, rumour is rife that forces behind the removal of Professor Barth Nnaji as Minister of Power are still at work to kill the project. Another plausible line of argument is the administrative or policy summersault angle. They argue that conflict of interest between the Geometric Power and the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC), the new company that won the bid to distribute power in the five eastern states of Abia, Anambra, Enugu, Ebonyi and Imo could undermine the interest of Geometric. EEDC, it is argued, will not sit by and watch another company take over the generation and distribution of power in a juicy commercial city of Aba and environs. Analysts maintain that EEDC will do whatever it could to retain the city in its kitty. Yet others insist that powerful forces are bent on sabotaging the project for selfish reasons. Is it possible that Professor Nnaji has come to a crossroads on the project? The plant, some people contend is a World Bank project in which agreements were duly signed and therefore not subject to the vagaries of the Nigerian business climate. Aba is also host to the National Integrated Power Project (NIPP) at Aloji. It is doubtful whether the plant is ready. This could be another reason for sabotage.
The multi-million dollar power plant is located in a large expanse of land at Osisioma industrial area of Aba ,Abia State, behind the PPMC/NNPC depot. Though the technical status of the plant could not be immediately ascertained, every other thing appears ready as far as the eyes could see. From the main entrance, which is about 500 meters to the main facility, one could see from the height of the flowers and the trim green lawn that the plant had been ready for some time. Also the staff, all busy with their schedules, the administrative blocks, furnished and in use, are indicators that the readiness of the plant is unmistakable.
The $530m power plant’s 141 megawatt also has a 27-kilometre gas pipeline, four brand new substations and three comprehensively refurbished ones inherited from the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), construction of over 100kms of 33kV overhead lines primarily on unique steel tubular poles. The power lines crisscross the complex and outward.
Surprisingly, at the complex, no one could speak on the status of the company or the reason for the delay in service provision. But the Admin Assistant, Oluchukwu Chiegbu, said information on the plant could only be released with permission from the headquarters in Abuja. She said it was no use trying to persuade her because “it’s a management policy; even if I know anything I cannot say it, but unfortunately I have no information on the technical status of the plant or the reason for its present state.”
Agatha Nnaji is the Managing Director of Geometric Power Ltd. She is sure that whatever has stalled the operation of the plant will be sorted out before the end of the year. Nnaji who spoke on phone did not elaborate. One thing is however certain; if the matter is not resolved soon it will send a wrong signal to other investors not only in the power but other critical sectors of the economy.