Fashola: We’ll Provide Stable Power Supply in Six Months
Inaugurates 8.5 megawatts Peninsula IPP
Gboyega Akinsanmi The Lagos State Government at the weekend said it could generate stable power supply for all homes in the state within six months if the Eko Distribution Company could give part of its concession to it.
The state governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, said this in Lekki, while inaugurating the 8.5 megawatts Peninsula Integrated Power Project (PIPP), which he said, made the fifth of such power projects in the last five years.
The governor inaugurated the power plant alongside the Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources, Mr. Taofeek Tijani and the General Manager of the Lagos State Electricity Board, Mrs. Damilola Ogunbiyi, among others.
At the inauguration, the governor acknowledged that he felt fulfilled with the conduct of youths that delivered the project despite the difficulties in getting to the finishing point.
Fashola said it also showed that the money to improve the domestic economy of Nigeria “is here, since we do not need the World Bank to come and do this for us. So, let no one say that he has no money to deliver power for the entire country.
“This is the limit to which the law allows us to do, but we have done this to make a statement that power can be generated. So, when they come with lies that power is impossible, you can tell them that we have power here. We make it possible.
“Let the EKO DISCOs sign a contract with me, giving part of their concessioning to the state government, in about six to eight months, there will be power in all homes in Lagos State.”
He said he had made an offer to the DISCOs in Lagos to allow the state government lead in generation and distribution in government estates in areas like Lekki, Abraham Adesanya, Magodo and Ogudu where all the distribution assets were provided with Lagos tax payers’ money but the DISCOs have not yet taken up the offer.
The governor added that the project in partnership with PIPP and Heritage Bank “is to serve Lagos State public water corporations in Lekki Phase 1, Oniru, Victoria Island and Ikoyi, as well as over 25km of public lightening in the Lekki axis.”
In a welcome address, the energy commissioner said the new addition “is about continuity in public infrastructure programme of the state government. Stage one is 8.5 megawatts, with the capacity for 30 megawatts.
“Lagos IPPs now have a total of 47 megawatts of electricity in total, powering public institutions around the state. The generated megawatts is however a tiny drop in the over 9,000 megawatts power deficit in the state.”
Also speaking, Ogunbiyi said the state had shown that reliable and sustainable power projects are possible through the youths. She said though it had been a successful story, the state was just scratching the surface in its aggressive development plan in the area of power.
The promoter of the PIPP, Mr. Farouk Agoro, said the new IPP was an innovative idea of world-class natural gas-fired power generating facility, sold to the government by youths and it was bought into, to support government institutions, especially in the area of water supply and security.