Electricity generation drops nationwide 'Nigeria signs $20bn agreement with GE to build 10,000mw plant

PUBLIC power supply has worsened in many states of the federation, especially in Lagos State, which accounts for 40 per cent of the national electricity demand.A check by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) revealed that industrial, commercial and individual electricity consumers had complained of more frequent outages in the past three weeks, while residents in the Lagos metropolis hardly had up to three hours of supply daily.A source at the Egbin power station at Ikorodu, Lagos, who did not want to be quoted, told NAN that generation at the thermal plant had dropped from 900 megawatts to less than 500 megawatts by Friday, due to the ongoing rehabilitation work at the Kanji Dam in Niger.The source said none of the six units at the plant was producing at its installed capacity of 220 megawatts, adding that only four of them were now working.However, Mr Mike Uzoigwe, Chief Executive Officer, Egbin Power Station, told NAN that generation at the plant stood at 1,080 megawatts, adding that five of the six units at the plant were working at full capacity.Meanwhile, Nigeria has signed a $10 billion agreement with General Electric (GE) to build 10,000 megawattspower plants in the country.The Minister of Power, Professor Barth Nnaji, who signed the memorandum of understanding (MoU) with GE inLondon, on Sunday, said it provided for the construction of 'series of power plants' in the country.He said under the MoU, the GE would now be an equity participant, adding that that the government would tap a small percentage of the National Pension Fund to finance some of the power projects.
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