FG targets 11,000 megawatts with new FEC approvals of N5.141bn 

The Federal Government is hoping to shore up its power generation threshold to at least 11,000 megawatts which it plans to offload into the national power grid to boost power supplies.

To this end, it has approved the contract for the design supply and installation of 1x60MBA, 132×33 KV transmission sub-station with associated 4×132 KV line bay extension at Hong local government in Adamawa State.

Approval for the contract was given at the Federal Executive Council meeting, presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, on Wednesday at the State House, Abuja, in favour of Messers Associate power solution engineering limited in the sum of N6,529,589,637.28.

Minister of Power, Abubakar Aliyu while giving insight into the contract awards, explained that it consists of two components, offshore and onshore.

According to him, the offshore component was awarded at the cost of $6,932,289.20. While the onshore is going for N3,337,250,789.77 at the CBN prevailing exchange rate and 7.5% VAT.

He told State House Correspondents that the delivery period is 24 months.

The second approval involves the procurement of power transformers and associated spare parts for the Transmission Company of Nigeria TCN to be deployed to six locations.

Aliyu stated,” I presented two memos to Council today which council has approved. The first memo council approved the award of contract for design supply and installation of 1x60MBA, 132×33 KV transmission substation with associated 4×132 KV line bay extension at Hong local government and Adamawa state in favour of Messers Associate Power Solution Engineering Limited in the sum of N6,529,589,637.28 consisting of two components one is offshore and onshore.

“The offshore is $6,932,289.20. While the onshore is N3,337,250,789.77 at the CBN prevailing exchange rate and 7.5% VAT. The delivery period is 24 months.

“This seeks to raise the capacity of the supply around that area and it’s going to affect so many towns and villages, there’s a very important local government headquarters around that area. It is going to affect Hong which is a local government headquarters in Adamawa state.

“Gombi is also another local government headquarters. Garkida town and then Hong. Hong is also a town along that road. Then Mudi, Woba, Michika, Madagari. There is an existing 132 that passes through this area. So what we’re doing now is to drop a substation there.

“The hope is by the time all these interventions we are making on the grid, reaches up to 11,000 or there about that it will be able to withstand and take it off. So this is the intervention.

“The second memo is to procure power transformers and associated spare parts for the TCN to be deployed to six locations as follows:

“One is to Aiyede in Oyo state to Messers T and D technologies limited. The offshore component is $1.8 billion, and the Onshore is N98 million. The second one is Gusau in Zamfara State, the same project was given to Messers Basharri limited. The third one is Kankia in Katsina state, which is to enjoy the same project to be supplied by Messers Farmamade energy limited.

“The next one is Minna, Niger State which is also to enjoy some project to Messers Crossworld global technology limited. Then the fifth one is to Okearo in Ogun to enjoy the same transformer.

“Then the sixth one is in Damaturu Yobe State. This one is very peculiar because as you may be aware, for over one year, Maiduguri has not been enjoying full electricity. We were able to take electricity supply through an old line of 33 KV which we repaired and restored and were able to take 10 megawatts to Maiduguri over 130 kilometres on a 33 single circuit.

“We restored that around three to four months or thereabout. So they’re enjoying but very little, by the time the electricity reaches Maiduguri, it will drop to six or seven megawatts because of losses along the way”.

Aliyu, however, lamented the incessant vandalism of power installations, saying the development was becoming worrisome.

“As you are also aware, the 330 takes power to Maiduguri was vandalized by insurgents. And we tried a number of times to restore it, they will go back and pull down the towers. So, we now decided, in the meantime to take the electricity through the 33 KVA which they are enjoying but not as they may like it to be. It’s being rationed around the time.

“So we are currently procuring another 33 double circuits new one to Maiduguri along the same route. So the idea is if someone tampers with it, it’s easy to restore it within a day or two, unlike the bigger one which is the 330 which takes weeks or months to restore because it’s in the bush.

“So as it is now even the one that we have installed, we have been doing hide and seek, sometimes they will pull one-two poles, we will repair and this is why we are doing this endeavour by the roadside.

“But currently, we have returned the contractor to restore the main 330 that was vandalized some time back. So in order to have enough electricity for Damaturu and its environs, from that substation Damaturu, and take some to Maiduguri, this project seeks to boost the capacity of the Damaturu substation.

“So the sixth one is also going to Messers Six Rix management at the cost of CES $6,717,673.13 and the local component is N1.313,323,271.25. This is for the Damaturu upgrade injection transformer.

“So the total approved for these is the dollar component is $22,670,416.33 and the Naria component is N5,141,924,927.2. The Council graciously approved the two memos”.