President Goodluck Jonathan has approved plans to generate 20,000 megawatts (mw) of electricity and build 10,000 kilometres of transmission lines to improve power supply.
Chinedu Nebo
Power Minister, Chinedu Nebo, who disclosed this in Abuja, said the memorandum of understanding (MoU) Nigeria signed with Power China in July 2013 will be implemented as part of a comprehensive effort to raise power generation and distribution.
Nebo explained to a delegation from Power China who visited him that the implementation of the MoU will involve handling the projects in bits together with ancillary services like transmission lines.
The delegation was led by Power China Vice Chairman, Du Chunguo.
He assured the delegation that the ministry was committed to the MoU as the projects are critical to power generation.
He wants Power China to explore “coal as a significant part of the whole energy to be delivered.”
Assuring the delegation of the sincerity of the government, he stressed that “there is no dissenting voice, we are on the same page, all of us are concerned about this project, the government is most committed to this.”
Presidential Power Task Force Chairman, Beks Dagogo-Jack, counselled Power China to come up with a workable design, saying that data sharing on gas field availability, ownership and licensing are important.
Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Executive Director (Gas), David Ige, raised issues with the funding mechanism by Power China and urged it to make its investment framework clear.
Du said Power China was committed to the Nigerian electricity market, describing it as important to the development of the consortium.
“We are ready to do business with Nigeria and its power sector,” he added.