Power Sector News And Other Related Stories For Friday 12th August 2022
DISCOS: Nigeria Yet to Generate Up to 6000mw Electricity Since Independence
Since 1960 when Nigeria attained independence till date, Africa’s most populous nation has not generated up to 6000 megawatts (mw) of electricity, the Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors (ANED) has said.
The Executive Director, Research and Advocacy, ANED, an umbrella body of power distribution companies (Discos), Mr. Sunday Oduntan, disclosed this in Lagos at a one-day workshop for energy reporters and civil society groups.
The workshop centred on the topic: “Building Consumer Awareness and Strengthening the Customer Service Capacity Of Electricity Distribution Companies”, and was organised by ANED in partnership with McArthur Foundation.
Oduntan, who stated that Nigeria would require 200,000mw of power generation to meet the electricity need of its 200 million citizens, added that going by international standards, 1,000mw was needed to serve one million people.
Of Nigeria’s 13,000mw of installed generation capacity, only 3,500mw to 5,000MW was available for transmission to the final consumers.
https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2022/08/12/discos-nigeria-yet-to-generate-up-to-6000mw-electricity-since-independence/
IE Signs Tripartite Deal with Enaro Energy, Ayobo Community on Electricity Supply
Ikeja Electric Plc has signed a tripartite interconnected mini-grid agreement with Enaro Energy Limited and Ayobo community, to provide reliable and uninterrupted electricity supply to Ishokan Phase1 Estate, MercyLand Estate and Mercy Land Phase1 residents in Ayobo, Lagos State.
The initiative is in line with the Nigerian Electricity Regulation Commission’s goal of ensuring there is reliable and steady power supply across communities in the country through partnerships between distribution companies and independent power generators.
The agreement, which was signed at Ikeja Electric’s corporate headquarters in Lagos, will rely on the interconnected mini-grid initiative of the power sector to provide the customers with uninterrupted power supply.
Speaking during the signing of the agreement, the Chief Finance Officer of Ikeja Electric, Seqinah Adewunmi, who represented the Chief Executive Officer, Folake Soetan, stated that the initiative is a landmark in the history of the power sector in Lagos State, Nigeria, as those communities will be the first to experience uninterrupted power supply in Lagos, via a blend of grid and off-grid generation and distribution of power.
Ikeja Electric Tops as Discos Generate N761.17bn in 2021
Ikeja Electric Distribution Company (IKEDC) generated N155,012.01 as total revenue from electricity distribution companies in 2021 was N761.17billion.
According to a report published by the National Bureau of Statistics, IKEDC also had the highest energy billed in gigawatt hours (gwh) which was 408,862.
Ibadan Electric DisCo (IBEDC) has the highest estimated billing and metered customers which stood at 1,302,371 and 782,105 respectively.
The total number of customers using the electricity in the country also grew to 10.51 million in the year under review as IBEDC recorded highest customers of 2,084,476.
Speaking on the report, NBS said, “In total, electricity billed in 2021 grew by 5.98% from 22,042.28 (Gwh) in 2020 to 23,360.59 (Gwh) in 2021. In 2021, total revenue collected stood at N761.17 billion, an increase of 44.50% compared to N526.77 billion in 2020.
https://www.vanguardngr.com/2022/08/ikeja-electric-tops-as-discos-generate-n761-17bn-in-2021/
Challenges Following the Privatisation of the Nigerian Electricity Sector
Privatization can simply be defined as the transfer of a business, industry, or service from public ownership to a private ownership. The concept of privatization revolves around the government withdrawing from economic activities, in order to confine itself to its traditional functions of maintenance of law and order thus, creating and enabling an environment for private businesses to flourish. Privatization is an important economic strategy as it empowers and encourages private persons to take active roles in the rejuvenation of their economy.
Privatization is an advantageous process for an economy as its main advantage is to generate financial resources for the re-investment of public sector enterprises. As a result of various government’s focus on various parts of a nation, there would most likely be deficiencies and therefore, the private sector would aid by making optimum use of the resources they possess, and efficiently implement them in areas that are lacking.
Since the advent of electric power in Nigeria in 1898, there has been many evolutions and transformation of what it once was to what it is now. In 1962, after the establishment of the Niger Dam Authority (NDA), which was responsible for the construction and maintenance of dams in the River Niger and elsewhere, the power generated was being sold to ECN (Electricity Corporation of Nigeria).
FG to Add 204MW of Electricity to Ekiti
The Federal Government says plans are underway to add 204 Mega Watts (MW) of electricity to boost power supply in Ekiti State.
Abubakar Aliyu, the minister of power, said this in a statement by Ndidi Mbah, the general manager, public affairs, Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), on Wednesday, in Abuja.
Abubakar said the Federal Government had begun the construction of a 132 kilovolts transmission line and a 2 by 60 Mega Volt Ampere (MVA) transmission substation and a switching station in the state to raise the capacity by 204 megawatts
The minister, who was speaking at the ground-breaking ceremony in Ado Ekiti, said that the project consisted of a 50km stretch of 132kV transmission line from Ikere (Ado Ekiti) with a turn in – turn out at Ijesa Isu that terminates at Ilupeju Ekiti.
Aliyu, represented by the managing director of TCN, Sule Abdulaziz, said the project also had a 2X60MVA, 132/33kV transmission substation with four line bays at Ijesa Isu Ekiti with a switching station at Ikere (Ado Ekiti).
https://businessday.ng/news/article/fg-to-add-204mw-of-electricity-to-ekiti/
Fayemi Begins Construction of Two Power Substations in Ekiti
The Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, yesterday, flagged off the construction work on 132/33 KV power substations in Ijesa Isu and Ilupeju Ekiti .
Fayemi, who expressed delight that the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) in 2020 resulted in commencement of work, said that the project was borne out of the collaboration of his administration with the federal government to solve the problem of epileptic power supply in the state.
The governor, who was epresented by the Ekiti State Deputy Governor, Mr. Bisi Egbeyemi, described the project as “another milestone in the quest to make life comfortable for our people,” adding that his administration fulfilled some obligations before the project could see the light of the day.
The Minister of Power, Mr. Abubakar Aliyu, commended Fayemi’s administration for its commitment to the realisation of the project and collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Power to boost power supply to communities in Ekiti State and stimulate social and economic development.
Saudi Arabia Secures Funding for Electricity Interconnection with Egypt
Saudi Arabia announced today new funding for its electricity interconnection plan with Egypt.
The Saudi Electricity Company said it secured a 14-year facility worth $567.5 million to finance the Saudi Arabia-Egypt electricity interconnection project. The deal was signed by the British bank Standard Chartered and Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and is guaranteed by the Swedish government’s export credit agency, the official Saudi Press Agency reported.
A facility refers to a line of credit that can be drawn upon within a set time frame. In this instance, Standard Chartered and Sumitomo Mitsui will provide the Saudi Electricity Company with the requested funds. Sweden will pay the banks the money borrowed should the Saudi firm not be able to pay.
Export credit agencies provide financing for international trade.
What it means: Electricity interconnection occurs when one country connects its electricity system with another’s. Work began on the Saudi-Egypt interconnection project earlier this year, and Egypt expects it to be finished by 2026. The interconnection will provide Egypt with 3,000 megawatts of power at a cost of $1.8 billion.
Electricity Costs Estimated to Go Up by 35%
The country is yet to face another rise in energy costs. After gas suppliers announced potential increases of up to 80% in autumn, electricity may go up by 35%.
For households, this will mean that they pay around €300 more per year for electricity, says Claude Simon, who is in charge of energy sales at Enovos.
He further explained that this has to do with the spike in gas costs: “Electricity is partially produced with the help of gas. With gas prices spiking, they also impact the price of electricity.” People might thus be forced to not only conserve petrol and gas, but also electricity come winter.
One of the potential solutions to the problem are alternative energy sources. However, Simon drew attention to the limits of renewable energy production, including solar panels and windmills, which are not yet able to compensate the regular production.
https://today.rtl.lu/news/luxembourg/a/1952814.html
