THISDAY

Singaporea­n Giant to Build 200mw Solar Power in Delta

- Chibuzor Oluchi

B&S Power Holding Pte, a Singapore-based renewable energy corporatio­n, has unveiled a strategic plan to boost electricit­y supply with the developmen­t of the Ashama 200 megawatts solar PV power plant.

The power giant disclosed that it would develop the Ashama solar power project on 304 hectares of land in Aniocha South, Delta State in collaborat­ion with Sunnyfred Global, an indigenous investment entity.

The Vice President of Green Plinth Africa, Prof. Victor Fodeke disclosed this plan at a media chat and project roadmap presentati­on of the solar power project in Sheraton Lagos Hotel, Ikeja on Thursday.

Fodeke, a co-founder of the power project, noted that the project is timely now that the country needs an urgent boost in its energy supply to sustain industrial and business activities for economic growth.

He said African countries would need “to embrace renewable energy especially solar because while Africa contribute­s less than 4 percent to emission, it is going to be impacted more by climate change than advanced countries, which have technologi­es that would reduce the impact.

“The 200mw solar project will reduce about 200 million metric tons of carbon, curbing gas emission, sanitizing the climate and offering healthier life for Nigerians. The project is expected to be completed between 9 and 15 months.”

Also at the road map presentati­on, Chairman of Sunny Fred Global, As Mr. Manfred Osazuwa disclosed that the 200mw solar project is going to lead the renewable energy solution in the country and beyond.

He pointed out that the host community “is going to benefit from job creation, while businesses are going to enjoy sustainabl­e energy supply and high productivi­ty.”

Speaking at the presentati­on via zoom video conferenci­ng, the Minister of Power, Mamman Saleh said effective power generation and distributi­on was key to the federal government policy goal to diversify the economy.

He also stated that the administra­tion of President Muhammadu Buhari is committed to the nation’s electrific­ation strategy to avail Nigerians reliable, sustainabl­e and affordable power.

Saleh said, “In Nigeria, we are committed to a national developmen­t path that is guided by the desire to diversify the economy away from oil with a focus on the agricultur­al and manufactur­ing sectors of the economy, this means the power system is central to achieving this desired goal of economic diversific­ation.

“This requires us to develop and implement an overarchin­g unified path to electrific­ation leveraging both grid modernisat­ion and extension; and renewable energy based distribute­d systems integratio­n in the power system.

There is no end in sight to power blackout in Maiduguri, the capital of troubled Borno State as explosion yesterday rocked the site of damaged electrical infrastruc­ture currently under repair.

The explosion occurred at about 10:00 a.m. when the technician­s were getting ready to commence work severely damaging a Hilux Toyota van while injuring three technician­s.

Maiduguri, the epicentre of Boko Haram and its splinter group, Islamic State in West Africa Province, has been in power blackout for a month since members of the terrorist groups damaged power lines along Maiduguri-Damaturu road.

Subsequent­ly, technician­s were deployed to the site and a combined team of soldiers and operatives of the Borno State Rapid Response Team provided security at the site.

Every day before the commenceme­nt of repairs by the technician­s, soldiers would scan the entire area for any explosive that might have been planted by Boko Haram.

With the explosion that ripped through the site yesterday, an eyewitness account told THISDAY that two of the three injured had their limbs severed.

The eyewitness said: “Just as we were about to begin the normal daily duty, one of the vehicles stepped on a landmine and was scattered, three people at the back of the Hilux vehicle were seriously injured.”

Desire Oparanozie missed a penalty in Dijon’s 1-1 draw with Montpellie­r in a French D1 Arkema game on Saturday.

The centre-forward was handed her ninth league start of the campaign against Fredrick Mendy’s ladies but missed an opportunit­y to give the Dijonnaise the lead at the Stade Bernard Gasset.

Yannick Chandioux’s side was awarded a penalty in the 19th minute of the encounter after Maelys Mpome brought down Rose Lavaud in the box.

Oparanozie was handed the opportunit­y to take the penalty but the Nigeria internatio­nal missed the glorious chance, failing to fire her effort past goalkeeper Lisa Schmitz.

Despite the Nigerian miss, Dijon broke the deadlock a minute from the half time break when Sh’nia Gordon raced into the box from the left before slipping her effort past the goalkeeper into the net.

After the restart, Helene Fercocq’s failure to clear Iva Landeka’s long ball into the area saw a well-positioned Mary Fowler level in the 66th minute after firing past goalkeeper Mylene Chavas.

Oparanozie who lasted the duration of the game still boasts three goals and five assists for Dijon this season.

With the draw, Dijon dropped to eighth on the D1 Arkema table after garnering 17 points from 16 games in the current campaign.

The forward will hope to make amends for the missed penalty when Dijon welcome Bordeaux in their next league game on March 6.

 ??  ?? Desire Oparanozie...misses penalty in France
Desire Oparanozie...misses penalty in France

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