How poor electricity impedes Nigeria’s growth, by UK envoy

THE British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Cartriona Laing, has identified unstable power supply as one of the major factors behind Nigeria’s under- development.

The envoy spoke yesterday, in Kaduna, when she joined representative of Governor Nasir El- Rufa’i, Balaraba Aliyu Inuwa and Chairman of Kaduna Electric, Yusuf Hamisu Abubakar, to perform the groundbreaking of a 2.5mw solar hybrid power generation plant.

The facility is to be established by KONEXA, an integrated electricity distribution platform, in partnership with Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company.

While commending the promoters for the initiative, Laing stressed that energy remains solution of the future.

On the project, Vice President ( Operations), KONEXA, Hajiya Hasana Aliyu, said her firm was committed to improving power supply.

Her words: “KONEXA is focused on reducing aggregate technical, commercial and collection ( ATC& C) losses, as well as extending energy access to new connections and introducing new systems and processes through technology.”

She disclosed that for their first project in Nigeria, “KONEXA has partnered with the Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company to operate sub concession area and broader concession. Essentially, we have scaled down the business into a smaller network area which has given us the ability to painstakingly gather all the necessary data on the network and the end users to understand the needs, challenges and opportunities for better understanding of the regulatory environment.”

This, Aliyu said had enabled them to put together an investment plan that addresses challenges and leverages opportunities.

Earlier in his welcome remarks, Abubakar described the partnership as historic, adding that it would only not help provide uninterrupted power supply to the communities, but also create employment opportunities for the state’s teeming unemployed youth.