Precious Anga
Lagos — The Federal Government has engaged China Energy Engineering Corporation, also known as Energy China, to determine how Nigeria can deliver the long-delayed 3,050MW Mambilla Hydropower Project in Taraba State.
Minister of Power Joseph Tegbe disclosed the development during a media parley in Abuja to mark his first 100 days in office, saying the Chinese contractor had been asked to assess the most practical delivery model, including the possibility of executing the project in phases.
The move follows Nigeria’s recent victory in the long-running arbitration dispute linked to the project. An International Chamber of Commerce tribunal in Paris ruled in Nigeria’s favour on September 17, dismissing claims brought by Sunrise Power and removing a major legal obstacle that had delayed progress on Mambilla for years.
Tegbe said large-scale hydropower projects such as Mambilla, alongside smaller schemes supporting agricultural corridors, would form part of the country’s medium- and long-term strategy for expanding electricity supply.
The minister also disclosed that Nigeria’s recent power mission to China secured commitments from major Chinese engineering companies and financiers to accelerate priority electricity projects.
China Machinery Engineering Corporation has reaffirmed its role in the 1.9GW Presidential Power Initiative, with the first transmission lines scheduled for delivery in the first quarter of 2027, Tegbe said.
China National Electric Engineering Company, meanwhile, has advanced financing arrangements for the $116m Zungeru evacuation project, while Tebian Electric Apparatus Stock has committed to a proposed $500m industrial park for power-equipment manufacturing.
HengFei Cables has also committed to supplying cables for the second phase of the Presidential Power Initiative and proposed establishing a cable assembly plant and training centre in Nigeria.
Tegbe said the government would use the investments to link power infrastructure development with local manufacturing and technical capacity, while the next phase of sector reforms would focus on stabilising the grid along the Lagos, Enugu-Port Harcourt and Abuja-Kaduna-Kano corridors.
“These first 100 days have laid the groundwork for sustained repair and stabilisation,” he said, adding that technical audits had commenced along the Lagos and Abuja corridors to identify network weaknesses and guide future investments.
