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Nigeria targets 1,268MW from new power plants

Published

9 months ago

February 25, 2024

Eight brown and green field hydropower projects built through public-private partnerships are expected to yield 1,268 megawatts of electricity, according to the Nigerian government.

It was learned that the Federal Executive Council had authorised the concession of one of the power projects, while three other power projects had already been awarded to concessionaires.

According to a February 2024 document that our correspondent was able to receive from the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation in Abuja on Friday, three of the hydroelectric projects had already been finished, while the remaining five were in varying states of completion.

Prof. Joseph Utsev, Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, delivered the document to the National Council on Water Resources and Sanitation during its thirty-first regular meeting.

With a population of more than 200 million, the nation has struggled with inadequate power generation and supply, with energy companies producing and distributing between 3,000MW and 4,000MW.

With a combined production of 1,338 megawatts, the Kainji and Jebba hydroelectric dams, operated by Mainstream Energy, provide approximately 33% of Nigeria’s current electricity generation of 4,000 megawatts.

The government has been investing in hydropower plants, which are powered by water turbines instead of gas, to help alleviate the situation. Since January of this year, the appalling state of the electricity supply has gotten worse as gas suppliers to gas-fired thermal power plants have stopped supplying the product to the plants because of the $1.3 billion in debt that the electricity producing facilities owe.

In a recent ministry presentation, the minister of water resources said that significant advancements in brown and green field hydropower production through public-private partnerships had been made.

“We have conclusively concessioned some projects while still developing others through various PPP models itemised as follows: concession of the 40MW Dadinkowa Hydropower Project in Gombe State. We have attained financial closure, and the plant is operational, thereby, stabilising the transmission voltage of the North-East of Nigeria.

“Concession of the 30MW Gurara Hydropower Plant in Kaduna State up to financial closure and the plant, which is under rehabilitation, will commence commercial operation in the third quarter of the year 2024.

“Concession of the 40MW Kashimbila Hydropower Plant in Taraba State. The Federal Executive Council approval has been secured, the concession agreement executed and the commencement fee paid by the concessionaire to the special concession account as approved by the Federal Ministry of Finance Budget and National Planning,” Utsev said.

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Food prices drive second straight monthly hike in Nigeria’s inflation

Published

3 days ago

November 17, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

According to official statistics released on Friday, Nigeria’s inflation rate increased for the second consecutive month in October, rising to 33.88% in annual terms from 32.70% in September, mostly as a result of increasing food costs.

In an attempt to boost economic development and strengthen public finances, President Bola Tinubu devalued the naira and reduced subsidies, which caused inflation to spike in the second half of last year.

As the effects of the naira devaluation started to lessen in July of this year, a slew of hikes in the price of petroleum and devastating floods that destroyed crops once again exacerbated pricing pressures, making the greatest cost-of-living crisis in decades worse in Africa’s most populous country.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, price increases for basics such as rice, maize, bread, potatoes, and cooking oil prompted food inflation to surge from 37.77% in October to 39.16% year over year.

This year, more than 1.5 million hectares of agriculture have been damaged by torrential rain and floods in 29 of Nigeria’s 36 states, leaving millions hungry and displacing large numbers of people.

In an effort to curb inflation, the central bank has raised interest rates five times this year. On November 26, it is expected to make its final rate decision of the year.

VenturesNow

MTN financial report reveals drop in group service revenue

Published

3 days ago

November 17, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Due to operational difficulties in Sudan and the depreciation of the Nigerian naira, MTN Group, Africa’s largest telecom provider, announced on Thursday an 18.5% decline in service revenue for the third quarter that concluded on September 30.

With 288 million users in 17 African regions, MTN said that its group service revenue dropped from 156.3 billion rand ($6.99 billion) in the same quarter of the previous year to 127.4 billion rand.

Despite stating that “the naira was less volatile on a sequential basis in Q3 than in preceding quarters,” the business reported a 48.7% decline in MTN Nigeria’s income due to the currency’s depreciation.

Due to a stronger Ugandan shilling than the previous year, Uganda’s largest contributor, MTN South Africa (MTN SA), expanded by a meagre 3.3%.

Due to “subscriber registration regulations in Nigeria and a decline in users in Sudan, where the conflict has displaced millions of people,” the business reported that its subscriber base increased by 1.6% to 288 million.

Given the higher demand in Nigeria despite the legal obstacles, MTN plans to increase its capital expenditures, which it expects would total between 28 and 33 billion rand for the entire year.