16 August, 2011, Sweetcrude, Abuja – Nigeria would require a capital investment of N520 billion to increase its electricity generating capacity from the current 4,200 megawatts (mw) to 13,000mw by 2013, according to Minister of Power, Prof. Bart Nnaji.
But, Nnaji said the federal government could not, on its own, undertake this required investment owing to its enormity and the multifarious developmental activities that were at competition for government’s resources.
He disclosed at a one-day retreat for senior management staff of his ministry in Abuja that the current rankings in the world’s scale of power generation places Nigeria at an appreciable position of third in Africa with a generation figure of 5.96 gig watts (GW), only after South Africa and Egypt which generates 40.498GW and 20.46GW respectively.
Nnaji maintained that funding in the power sector was not all about money, but the development of structures that are capable of sustaining the growth of the sector. He affirmed that the current efforts to privatise the sector was hinged on the need to foster an enduring structure, adding that the contributions of private sector investment in the sector had so far resulted in about 30 per cent power generation in the country.
According to him, the ministry’s strategic initiative to improve power generation and distribution in the country include off-grid generation to unserved remote communities through independent power generating sources, transmission network development fund, as well as moves aimed at stamping out system collapse.
Others strategic initiatives of the ministry include the proposed power allocations to major cities and industrial centres, future power evacuation from Gbarain power station, as well as the development of Geographic Information Survey (GIS) energy map.
Nnaji harped on the need to attract investment to the sector in line with the current reforms, saying government alone could not fund the necessary investment requirement of the sector.
