Peter Obi promises stable electricity by end of 2023

Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has promised to give the country a stable national grid by the end of 2023.

This is according to his campaign manifesto that was officially released on December 4.

In the manifesto, Peter Obi says he intends to build on the current agreement the Buhari administration has with Siemens Energy under the presidential power initiative (PPI).

According to the manifesto, Obi will successfully complete the $2.3b Nigeria-Siemens network improvement deal (technical upgrade and strengthening) to achieve 7,000 megawatts (MW) stable capacity by 2023, 11,000 megawatts by 2024, and 25,000 megawatts by 2025.

He also said his administration would retain top local and international financial advisers to restructure the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).

“The TCN will be incentivized to take every/all step to forestall power grid collapses, while they will be compensated for grid stability and performance.

In the manifesto, Obi promised to launch a solar power revolution across Nigeria, especially the northern region, with a view of ensuring that all cities and industrial parks in the region have uninterrupted power by the end of 2024.

“Urgently re-engaging the 14 Independent Power Producers (IPPs), who had in 2016, initiated power purchase agreements (PPAs) worth $2.5 billion to build a total of 1,125 MW of installed solar capacity for delivery to the national grid.

“Negotiating a win-win Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with an excellent list of local and international investors, who have already demonstrated their capacity to fund these projects.

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“Increase the capacity of some of the 14 plants to achieve 5,000MW generation by expanding at least 10 of the projects, where transmission capacity has been expanded or proven local demand has been adequately developed.

He also promised to enact policies and measures to enable embedded power generation to access pipeline gas available at input pricing to equal the current gas-to-power price plus transportation of $2.50 + 80 cents, or some more affordable pricing, as opposed to the current $7.00 – $8.00 per million standard cubic feet (mscf).

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“Within 3 years, each of the southern states should develop and construct embedded power plants of capacities ranging from 5MW to 30MW up to a total of 300MW per state from locally-sourced gas in and around the states.

Obi also plans to complete and commission the Mambilla hydroelectric power (HEP) project, which is planned to deliver 3,050MW; the Kashimbila Dam project planned to deliver 40MW; and the 40MW Dadinkowa HEP plant.

Obi plans to work with the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), through collaborations with the private sector and international development finance institutions (DFIs) to develop 100,000 mini-grids across the country by the end of 2024, providing reliable power supply for up to 750,000 rural small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

The collaboration will provide an uninterrupted power supply in all federal universities and university teaching hospitals; support the private sector to deploy 15 million solar standalone systems for residential and SMEs use by the end of 2025.

According to the manifesto, Nigeria, with technical support and backing from China, has been working on its nuclear energy project at Ahmadu Bello University in Kaduna since the mid-1990s. The location opened in 2004, and is home to roughly 170 Nigerian workers, and operating its second reactor.

Obi will support the current efforts by the Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Agency (NNRA) to procure, build, own, operate, and transfer (BOOT) contracts for top international nuclear companies to construct nuclear power plants to generate 4,000 MW of electricity at acceptable PPA terms for over 40 years.