Govt Blames Power Outage On Pipeline Vandalism

THE Minister of Power, Professor Chinedu Nebo has blamed the lingering irregular power supply and total blackout experienced in the South-West region, on continuous attacks on gas pipeline by vandals.

  This is coming on the heels of the recent destruction of 24”ELPs gas pipeline at Inikoroga in Gbaramatu kingdom in Delta State.

  The minister, who disclosed this to newsmen, said President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, was trying its best to ensure that regular power supply is a reality in Lagos and its environs. According to him, reports on the bi-weekly attacks, made it necessary to believe that there are forces within the zone working to prevent residents of the zone from enjoying steady power supply.

   “Few weeks ago, after the President commissioned Phase 2 of the Egbin power station in Lagos, he assured Lagos residents of his commitment to making steady power supply a reality. But it is obvious that the busting of gas pipelines to our power stations has moved from being a horrible bi-monthly occurrence, to a depressing daily interval.  

  “We just concluded fixing the vandalised Escravos Lagos gas pipeline that was knocked off by vandals few weeks ago, and it took us time to fix. Within that period, gas plant OBEN was shutdown for its maintenance and its enhancement of capacity, hoping that when it is done, we would have regular electricity. Now, we are faced with the devastating blow of fixing a newly vandalised gas pipeline in Delta state,” he stated.

  Nebo said it was not possible to cope with this despicable level of orchestrated menace, saying the timing and regularity of the attacks suggested the possibility of more sinister motives.

  Meanwhile, General Electric (NYSE: GE) has completed the supply and installation of three 25-megawatt (MW), trailer-mounted, TM2500+ aero derivative gas turbines to generate uninterrupted power at the Port-Harcourt refinery. The supply was made through Genesis Electricity Limited, an independent power producer. 

  The mobile gas turbines will ensure regular power supply to the oil refinery so as to overcome grid outages and return to full capacity for refining. Before now outages have reduced the refinery’s output to 30 per cent of its total maximum capacity of 210,000 barrels per day. 

  To help address these issues, Genesis Electricity Limited signed a 20-year power purchase agreement, with NNPC in November 2013, for the installation of GE’s TM2500+ units at the refinery. 

  The TM2500+ gas turbines will provide both the base load and backup power to support operations at the refinery. The agreement also includes the future modernization of other refineries. 

   General Electric acted as a catalyst for the project, taking it to financial closure, by working with all stakeholders and partners to structure the project’s equity. This is the first-ever non-recourse project financing for power plants in Nigeria. 

  “We are excited to work with GE to deploy their proven TM2500+ gas turbine technology and help Nigeria successfully return the Port Harcourt refinery to full service as quickly as possible,” said Akinwole Omoboriowo, Chief Executive of Officer (CEO), Genesis Electricity Limited. “This project was not only important in getting the refinery back into full operation, but also to support Nigeria’s long-term economic interests by achieving optimum refining capacity.”