27 June 2015, Benin – Dr Albert Obanor, an Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Benin, on Saturday urged President Muhammadu Buhari to revive the coal industry in order to boost power supply.
Obanor, who spoke in Benin at the annual public lecture of the Nigerian Institution of Mechanical Engineers, said that reviving the coal industry would put an end to epileptic power supply.
Noting that 20 out of the 23 power stations in the country were fired by natural gas, he said that the high dependence on natural gas could only be minimised if the coal industry was given its deserved attention.
He said focusing on the coal industry would help to address the dependence on natural gas by power stations.
The don further urged Buhari to encourage Independent Power Producers to source energy from other sources like water, solar and biomass to reduce over reliance on gas.
Obanor counselled against the cancelation of the privitisation of the power sector, saying that government should rather re-assess and re-tune it for optimal performance.
He also advocated the creation of a well-trained special security force with the sole purpose of monitoring and preventing pipeline vandalism.
In his remarks, the Chairman of Nigeria Institution of Mechanical Engineering in Edo, Mr Okezi Otomi, blamed poor engineering products from the country on lack of engineering standards.
He said lack of engineering standards was responsible for the difficulty in marketing Nigerian brands abroad.
– Punch
