NDPHC ready to operate in Lagos Electricity Market – MD

By Obas Esiedesa, Abuja

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Niger Delta Power Holding Company, Engr. Jennifer Adighije, has expressed the readiness of the company to play a major role in the Lagos State Electricity Market.

Adighije, who stated this during a visit to the Managing Director/CEO of the Lagos State Electricity Regulatory Commission (LASERC), Temitope George, on Friday, said that with about 2,000 megawatts of stranded power assets, NDPHC is strategically positioned to improve electricity supply in Lagos State.

She noted that Lagos currently receives about 1,000MW from the national grid, leaving a huge supply gap against the state’s estimated 12,000MW electricity demand, adding that NDPHC is prepared to supply an additional 1,500MW to the state.

According to her, the company’s mandate covers power generation as well as transmission and distribution infrastructure.

She said: “Our mandate is fundamentally to scale up power generation with the associated transmission and distribution networks, and so we are uniquely positioned in the power sector because our mandate cuts across every sphere of the sector, from the gas-to-electricity value chain through generation, transmission and distribution.

“Over the years, we have led power sector reforms and helped close infrastructure gaps, and that is what makes us the right candidate to partner with LASERC to drive access to electricity in Lagos.”

The NDPHC boss added: “It is widely known that NDPHC has the largest power generation assets in sub-Saharan Africa. We have an installed capacity of about 4,000MW but, regrettably, on a daily basis we are only able to dispatch about 400MW to 500MW. Clearly, we have a lot of stranded capacity.

“From the Lagos Electricity Market Report published recently, we can see there is a huge demand and supply gap for energy. This is the role we want to play, which is why we are engaging with LASERC to support the scaling and acceleration of distributed access to electricity in Lagos State.”

She stressed that the company is ready to bridge the supply gap in the short term.

Describing the Lagos electricity market as vibrant and commercially attractive, Adighije said the company was willing to make significant investments in the state’s power infrastructure.

“The Lagos electricity market is a very lucrative and vibrant one. This is a market where we are willing to make huge investments. In the past, we made investments in the form of interventions, so why would we not invest in a market where we have a clear line of sight to investment recovery?

“We are very keen to invest in transmission and distribution assets to ensure we can deliver quality, reliable and affordable electricity to the last mile,” she added.

Adighije, who was accompanied by NDPHC General Manager, Commercial and Business Development, Prof. Stephen Ogaji, also congratulated George on her appointment as LASERC Managing Director and expressed confidence in her ability to lead the organisation successfully.

Welcoming the NDPHC delegation, LASERC MD, Temitope George, reiterated the Lagos State Government’s determination to improve electricity supply across the state.

George commended NDPHC for its investments in the power sector and expressed the commission’s readiness to partner with the company to achieve its mandate.

“We are excited to have NDPHC here, one of the largest power generating companies in Nigeria. We have seen that they have already made significant investments in Lagos, and we know there are still infrastructure gaps,” she said.

“Recently, during our maiden stakeholders’ session, we stated that part of our regulatory agenda is to ensure some franchise areas within Lagos enjoy 24/7 power supply. With the NDPHC MD’s visit today and the company’s willingness to partner with Lagos to provide power and invest in infrastructure, we are confident that Lagos residents will begin to see 24/7 electricity supply in the near future,” she added.

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