Govt says Nigeria’s transmission network needs N160 billion yearly

THE Federal Government has announced a yearly investment of $1 billion (N160 billion) in nationwide transmission network to tackle the challenges of power supply in Nigeria.

  This investment, which would come from the government and the private sector, is expected to position the country’s transmission network towards global competiveness.

  The government is already considering several options to ensure private sector participation and investment in transmission with the option of recouping investments through wheeling charges.

  The Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo, made this disclosure yesterday at Worldstage National Electricity Power Conference in Lagos. 

  Nebo said that as the transmission network was still under government control albeit under management contract by Manitoba Hydro International, it was evident that these monies cannot be provided by government alone, therefor the need for private investors.

  The minister, who was represented by his Special Assistant (Investments & Finance), Olajuwon Olaleye, said that government will continue in its role to attract and facilitate strategic and innovative investments in the sector that will further enhance the country’s power generation, distribution and transmission capacity to meet current and future demands.

  Nebo hinted that transmission network remained one of the major obstacles to effective power supply in the country.

  According to him, the transmission network, which is the life-blood of the entire electricity eco-system is currently proving to be a weak link in the Nigeria electricity supply industry.

  He stated: “Transmission is the only domain in the electricity supply value chain that still remains under the control of the Federal Government.  The government hired a management contractor, Manitoba Hydro of Canada, to manage the day to day affairs of the company.  Their services were engaged to fulfill the power sector roadmap goal of recorganising the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) into a technically, financially and commercially viable and market driven company”.

  He confessed that improving electricity transmission has not been easy under Manitoba’s leadership.

  Nebo identified obsolete infrastructure/technical losses, vandalism, and slow expansion/lack on investment framework for transmission as some of the critical issues facing the country’s transmission network.

  The minister stated: “Transmission infrastructure in this country is dated and many of the equipment are in poor shape due to neglect of maintenance during the NEPA/PHCN era.  The existing transmission network, which currently consists of 330KV and 132 KV power lines are week with high-energy losses. Nigeria has one of the highest transmission losses in the world; this is partly because the average age of the transmission equipment is over 30 years; the consequence of neglect of transmission infrastructure.  One of the jobs Manitoba has to do is to fix these issues in a timely fashion to allow for energy to be efficiently dispatched through the system to the distribution networks.

  “The transmission network is also suffering from the same demon of vandals as the oil and gas infrastructure network.  Transmission lines are made with copper, which can be sold in the standard market at premium price.  Vandals risk their lives to climb electrified poles to cut transmission lines down so that they profit from the destruction either by selling the cooper or by satisfaction of disrupting power supply in the country.

    The President/Chief Executive Officer of WorldStage Limited, Segun Adeleye, said that a year after privatization, consumers are frustrated over lack of improvement in power supply, after their hope had been raised that the coming of private owners would marginally bring about a change of fortune. “However, behind the scene, the new owners have been struggling with more problems than they bargained for”.

  Adeleye urged the Discos to leverage on a forum like WorldStage National Electricity Power Conference to connect with the consumers and other stakeholders to keep their hope alive.

 He added: “The Discos are the face of the electricity power industry, the direct interface with the consumers who pay to sustain the value chain.  There is the need to engender public support and understanding through sustained consumer education campaigns on the realistic picture of the industry”.

    Culled from http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/business