Sunday, 17 February 2013

FG assures steady power supply across the country



From businessday

The Minister of Information, Mr Labaran Maku, on Friday reiterated the Federal Government’s determination to improve power supply in the country.

Maku gave the reassurance at Ebocha, Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area of Rivers as part of the Good Governance tour of the state.

He said the Federal Government was also collaborating with states to implement the National Integrated Power Project (NIPP).

Maku said government had encouraged the private sector to build power projects aimed at increasing power generation in the country.

‘’We are also working with state governments under the NIPP progamme. Under the NIPP, we are building 10 additional power plants. We have inspected the fourth one here.

“So, together, if you look at the activities that are going on in the power sector, by private people such as the Geometric, which we have inspected at Aba, and this one by the Rivers government and the additional ones they are building , several other states, Bayelsa  and Delta, and quite a number of them are building additional power plants.”

‘’So, I want to assure Nigerians that from what we are seeing on ground, from the end of this year onwards, I believe that there will be greater stability of power in the country. Even now, there is marginal increase in power generation.”

‘’We have taken it to less than 2,000 megawatts to over 4,000 megawatts now,’’ Maku said.

He also added that additional work on power plants would generate more power supply from the end of this year to 2014.

“Let me reassure Nigerians that as far as power supply is concerned, our country is moving in the right direction, far better than it used to be in the past, So let’s keep working together so that Nigeria can be lighted up 24 hours.”

“That is the mission.”