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FG says power generation hits 4,600MW

By on November 8, 2014

The Federal Government claimed on Thursday that for the first time in Nigeria’s history, it was able to generate 4,600 megawatts of electricity.

Before Thursday’s announcement, the country’s highest peak generated power was recorded on December 23, 2012 at 4,517.6MW.

According to the government, the rise to 4,600MW is due to the various measures adopted in recent times to boost power generation across the country following the privatisation of the sector.

Some of the measures include the provision by the Central Bank of Nigeria of N213bn intervention fund for operators in the sector to be able to settle their outstanding gas debts and boost their operations, and the efforts made by government in arresting the menace of power infrastructure vandalism.

Speaking while inaugurating the National Power Sector Apprenticeship Scheme at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, the Minister of State for Power, Mr. Mohammed Wakil, announced the latest figure of power generation.

“This is the first time that history is made in Nigeria for us to hit 4,600MW of power in our country. This shows that the reform in the sector is working and the privatisation of the sector is not a waste,” he said.

However, figures on the website of the Federal Ministry of Power on Thursday showed that power generation on November 2, 2014 was 3,977.74MW, while 3,897.42MW was sent out.

Peak generation as of that date was put at 4,284.3MW, while the peak demand forecast was 12,800MW.

The government pleaded with vandals not to tamper with power installations so as not to plunge the country into darkness.

The Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Power, Mr. Patrick Ikhariale, said for the sector to further increase the quantum of generated power, the vandals must desist from destroying gas pipelines and power installations.

“For the first time in this country, we have got to a new level in power generation. This shows that we are making progress in our pursuit of having adequate power supply. So it is important we do what is right to make sure this figure continues to increase,” he said.

On the NAPSAS programme, the Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo, said one of the critical challenges of the Nigerian power sector, which had become even more acute with the reform, was the lack of adequate human capital.

 

[Punch]