Otti Pushes for Completion of 1,074MW Alaoji IPP to Facilitate Stable Power Supply in Abia

Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti, has taken steps to ensure that Umuahia, the capital city and every part of the state attained stable power supply in no distant time.

He believes this goal could be achieved through the completion of the Alaoji Power Plant, a 1,074MW combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT), which was initiated during the administration of Goodluck Jonathan under the National Integrated Power Project (NIPP).

Otti's optimism of stable power supply for the entire Abia was fired up yesterday, when he visited the Alaoji Power Station with the Chairman

of Crome Group, Chief Emeka Offor, whose firm was handling the project.

Recently the Geometric Power Group's integrated power project was inaugurated to provide electricity exclusively for the Aba Ring-fenced area comprising nine out of Abia's 17 local governments.

Otti said he was encouraged by the development to seek for stable power supply for Umuahia and the remaining local governments not covered by Geometric hence his visit to Alaoji IPP.

The Alaoji Power plant located in Ugwunagbo Local Government, close to Aba was being developed in multiple phases is fitted with four GE Frame 9E Gas Turbines of 126MW, each, and two GE Steam Turbines of 286MW, each.

In the first phase of the power plant, four gas-powered Turbines, were completed and inaugurated in 2015 by former President Goodluck Jonathan.

The rest of the project is now being developed by the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC), owned by the Chrome Group. Work is ongoing on the additional two Steam Turbines, which will bring the plant's total capacity to 1,074MW.

Otti, who was impressed with the prospect of uninterrupted power supply for Abia with the generating capacity of the Alaoji IPP, promised that his administration was committed to facilitating the completion of the project.

"At the moment, my understanding is that the plant is not generating any power because of gas issues, which I believe would be solved shortly, but I think the more fundamental issue is that the capacity is very low.

"From what I gathered from the consortium clearly, the capacity could be expanded from anywhere between 45 megawatts to 1,072 megawatts," he said. "We will do everything possible to ensure that this happens," Otti vowed.

The Abia governor said he had been assured that within a timeline of between 18 and 24 months that maximum capacity would be achieved.