The Minister of Power, Professor Chinedu Nebo, has expressed confidence that the attainment of 10,000 mega watts of electricity before the end of 2014 is possible. He expressed this confidence despite the fact that the National Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) lacks budget for 2014.
Nebo, who predicated his optimism on the availability of more funds to the ministry via the budget, enumerated his areas of priority for the ministry in the current year as the completion of 215MW Kaduna power project, completion of bankable feasibility studies on 17 small and medium hydropower sites, coal-fired power plants at Enugu/Gombe axis would be given attention.
Other areas to be given premium attention, according to the minister, were the fast tracking of the development of 70MW Zenguru hydropower projects, ‘Operation Electrify Nigeria Project’, the completion of the power component of 34MW Dandinkowa Dam in Gombe State as well as the development of the power component of 40MW Kashimbilla multiple purpose dam among others.
Details of the ministry’s N59,051,290,389 billion budget shows that 20,592,094,44 will accrue to the main ministry, 24,912,292,467 is for Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) while 7,461,202,582 is for Rural Electrification Agency (REA).
Similarly, 1,750,000,000 is budgeted for National Electricity Commission (NERC), 2,607,856,489 for National Power Training Institute (NAPTIN) while 585,344,402 and 1,142,500,000 were mapped out for NELMCO and NBET respectively.
Agencies under the ministry, which also appeared at the budget defence, were the TCN, REA), NERC, NAPTIN, NELMCO and NBET.
Courtesy Thisday online
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