From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
Lagos State Governor, Akinwumi Ambode has revealed that his administration has begun an embedded power supply, a flagship programme for direct intervention in the power value chain towards achieving a 24-hour power for Lagos, a plan that will see the state generate 3,000 megawatts in the next three to six years.
According to him, it has become clear that the problems in the energy sector can no longer be left to the Federal Government alone to solve.
He stated this on Friday when he led a delegation comprising members of the state executive council, lawmakers and other critical stakeholders, to seek a no objection letter from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) for the state government’s Embedded Power Programme.
Ambode explained that the proposed power programme would generate up to 3,000MW of power through accelerated deployment of various power plants in strategic locations across the state by private sector power providers within three to six years.
According to him, the nation’s aspiration to create a secure and prosperous nation that is globally competitive will be difficult to achieve without stable power supply.
The governor explained that, “embedded power was designed as our flagship programme for direct intervention in the power value chain towards achieving a 24-hour power for Lagos.
“Lagos State has always demonstrated its capacity and willingness to play a leading role in resolving the power sector challenges in the state, subject to the limit of the federal authority allowed regulations.
“Having succeeded in powering government facilities, the next level of intervention for our government is to collaborate with other stakeholders in the power sector to design and implement a roadmap for uninterrupted power supply to homes and businesses in Lagos State.
“The draft of the Lagos State Embedded Power Bill was finalised in May 2017 and submitted to the National Electricity Regulatory Commission for clearance before same can be forwarded to the State House of Assembly.
“The stakeholders meeting holding today is a continuation of the ongoing engagement between NERC and the Lagos State Government on the Lagos State Embedded Power Programme.
“We are convinced that the offer by our government to deploy the state’s balance sheet in support of power generation, transmission, distribution, gas supply, metering, collection and enforcement in Lagos State will significantly relieve the national grid and free more energy for distribution to other parts of Nigeria.
“The proposed power programme will generate up to 3,000MW of power through accelerated deployment of various power plants in strategic locations across the state by private sector power providers within three to six years.”
In his response, the NERC’s Commissioner in charge of Legal Licence and Compliance, Dafe Akpeneye, who stood in for the commission’s vice chairman, promised that the NERC would work with the Lagos State Government to ensure the success of the programme.
Representatives of both Eko and Ikeja Distribution Companies at the meeting declared their support for the project, saying they would be hurting Nigeria if they failed to approve it.