Expect Stable Electricity By 2056

[Richard Akindele]

Expect Stable Electricity By 2056Nigerians expecting an improved electricity supply from the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) may as well forget it for now as the Minister for Power and Steel, Senator Liyel Imoke, has said that it would take another period of 50 years for more sustainable power generation and supply in the country.

According to Imoke, this is on the condition that that the Federal Government injects the sum of not less than $10 billion into the power sector, annually, for Nigeria to catch up with what he described as the over 20 years of neglect of the sector.

The Minister spoke at the weekend during the opening of a two-day retreat for stakeholders in the power sector, organised by the PHCN, in collaboration with the Bureau of Public Enterprises [BPE], in Kaduna.

He admitted that the Obasanjo government has since its inception in 1999, committed about N1.3 trillion to the sector but described the amount as a mere drop of water in the ocean.

As Imoke put it, "unless we articulate a programme that will see the sector transformed and make it more efficient and more attractive for investment, we will continue to wallow in darkness when indeed we should have excess capacity.

"We believe that reform of the power sector, privatisation of the industry, deregulation when necessary, will indeed be sine qua non for us to achieve the growth rate expected in this industry.

"The current growth of the Nigerian economy stands at seven per cent. If the power sector grows at a rate of seven per cent per annum from now on, we will take another 50 years to catch up on where we should be and that is a real challenge.

"So, if we set a target for growth of the economy at 10 per cent, then indeed, the power sector has to grow in the region of 12-15 per cent, each year. And when you translate that into cash, it means an investment in the region of $10 billion each year."

Earlier in his welcome address, PHCN managing director, Joseph Makoju, said government should gradually disengage from the power sector and leave it in the hands of the private sector.

Source: This Day.