Improved Rainfalls Boost Power Outputs of Nigeria’s Hydro Plants

Nigeria’s three hydro power generation companies (Gencos) have continued to make the most of improved rainfalls into their dams to grow their power production even into the months of October, records from the sector’s daily statistical databank have shown.

According to the databank , power sector daily report in the first two weeks of October had seen the hydro plants consistently increase their power production, thus generating a good volume of the total electricity supplied to Nigerians within the period.

A computation of the production levels of Gencos including gas Gencos, showed that from October 1 and 11, the three hydro plants collectively generated 11,103.56 megawatts (MW) of the 39,256MW generated, and this represented about 28 per cent of the generation output, leaving the balance of 28,152.44MW to be generated by 22 gas Gencos.

From the records, Jebba hydro power plant produced the most power within the period – 3,958.2MW, followed by Shiroro which produced 3,592.91MW, and Kainji which had 3552.45MW to show.

Their production pattern also showed that between October 1 and 11, Jebba produced 381MW, 315.51MW, 384.43MW, 352.01MW, 396.49MW, 343.59MW, 298.71MW, 318.93MW, 383.61MW, 382.9MW, and 400.02MW. Shiroro also had within that period 450.28MW, 425.85MW, 355.7MW, 349.09MW, 324.17MW, 342.02MW, 160.74MW, 221.45MW, 329.07MW, and 304.5MW, while Kainji produced 358.45MW, 325.68MW, 365.59MW, 342.45MW, 305.9MW, 292.34MW, 318.99MW, 316.03MW, 340.59MW, 311.35MW, and 275.11MW.

This also indicated that on the average, the three hydro plants generated 1,009.4MW of electricity from the average 3568.7MW of electricity the country produced everyday within the 11-day period.

Recently, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, indicated that power generation was beginning to grow but that the inability of distribution companies (Discos) to take more power that were generated was a challenge to the sector.

Similarly, the sector’s databank backed Fashola’s claims and explained that, “Disco inability to pick load is the largest constraint to improved service delivery at this current time.”

It added that within the period a total of 27,807MW of electricity representing 2,527.9MW daily were constrained from getting to homes and offices in Nigeria.

But in their response to claims they were rejecting power generated and transmitted to them, the 11 Doscos, through their umbrella body, the Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors (ANED), stated they were not rejecting electricity per se, but that the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) was fond of taking electricity loads to areas in their network they don’t want.

ANED’s Director of Research and Advocacy, Mr. Sunday Oduntan, explained in a meeting in Abuja that the TCN had always taken electricity loads to parts of the distribution networks where they frequently lose revenue for energy supplied to them, and ignoring their request to have them dump loads at their preferred locations.