The Managing Director of Transcorp Power Limited, Ughelli, Delta State, Mr Christopher Ezeafulukwe has canvassed for massive investment in power transmission and distribution infrastructure in Nigeria saying that this is the feasible panacea to halt the era of epileptic power supply in the country.
Ezeafulukwe, who is also the Chief Executive Officer of the company, also advocated that “power transmission in Nigeria should be privatised because transmission is still owned by the Federal Government presently”.
He canvasses additional investment in power transmission, and distribution infrastructure as panacea to epileptic supply in Nigeria.
Ezeafulukwe made the call on Saturday at the 8th Graduation and 9th Induction ceremony of the vocational skills training and entrepreneur empowerment programme, organised by Transcorp Power Limited for beneficiaries drawn from the host communities, as part of the company’s corporate social responsibility programmes.
He noted that “in as much as Transcorp Power Limited has the capacity to generate power, the transmission and distributiion infrastructure do not match the capacity of the generating company”.
He said: “We have the capacity. But they (transmission and distribution) are not able to match the power that we generate and put it on the national grid. And so, Nigerians continue to complain because the power is not getting to them as and when they need them.
“But there must be solution. Power must be fixed since it is the single most critical determinant of an economy that wants to move forward. We cannot move our economy forward without addressing the power issue. So, there is need for additional Investment in power transmission infrastructure.
“And that is why the Transmission Company of Nigeria announced recently that by the end of this year that the transmission capacity will be improved because they have ordered for additional transformers. These will be synchronized and added to the grid so that the impact can be felt.
“Additional Investment also at the distribution end is very important because power stands on a tripod. If anything happens along that cycle, the end user will not get power. If we can generate and transmission cannot take, the end user will not get power. And if we generate and transmission can take but distribution cannot take it home, the end user will not get power.
“So, we need the three legs upon which the power value chain is standing to operate well. And we also need the capacities to be increased. So, additional Investment is very important to improve the capacity”.
Ezeafulukwe spoke further on the desirability of privatising the power transmission in Nigeria, insisting that “the power sector cannot be rightly said to have been privatised when a critical part of the sector is still owned by Government.
“So, the transmission needs to be privatised so that the expertise and the commitment, the diligence that private sector brings would be impacted. We all know what this power plant used to be before Transcorp Power took it over in 2013. But today, we are the leading power generation in Nigeria.
“Everybody has his or her own area of specialization. Government is to make policy, create enabling environment and allow the real businesspeople and the experts who understand this business to run them. I think with that we will be able to get the robust power we deserve in the country”.
Delta State Governor, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, who was represented by the Executive Secretary of the state’s Technical and Vocational Education Board, Engr. Ikem Smart commended the management of Transcorp Power Limited for its visible investment in the improvement of lives and property in its area of operation and charged other organisations across the state to emulate the kind gesture as that would go a long way to reduce hostilities from host communities.
