Power Minister Says FG work to Sustain Power.

The Minister of Power, Engineer Abubakar Aliyu, has said the power sector would soon be sustained for the benefit of the entire country.
He made the Statement while commemorating his 50th day in office. The Minister noted that the Federal Government is working to resolve the challenges the power sector is experiencing.

He added that the Government concentrates on improving access to electricity, improving liquidity, improving services in terms of hours of supply, and billing transparency and accuracy.

Aliyu stressed that the Government is working towards exploring opportunities that will, in the short term, deliver the much-desired quick wins while staying focused on the long-term objectives to increase power availability.

He said the Government is also reviewing the operational licences of electricity generation and distribution companies following poor service delivery in the Sector.

“Hopefully, we will soon begin to experience the imminent turnaround in the power sector,” the Minister said.

“We are determined to deal with some policy issues, the legal and regulatory bottlenecks, and the human factors involved in the implementation and coordination of the power sector’s road map.

“Though clearly a work in progress, let me assure you that the viability of the Sector is not in doubt. As much as it is a capital-intensive sector and currently in need of massive injection of fresh capital, we are making steady progress.”

Parts of the Statement reads thus:
THE FIRST 50 DAYS: OUR REFORM AGENDA FOR THE POWER SECTOR – BEING A STATUS UPDATE REPORT BY THE HONOURABLE MINISTER OF POWER, ENGR. ABUBAKAR D. ALIYU, FNSE ON WEDNESDAY, 27TH OCTOBER, 2021

“It is with great delight that my Team and I engage with you today through this Statement. We hope to do this very frequently to bring Nigerians up to speed on the developments within the Ministry and the Power Sector as a whole.

“Since I assumed office in this Ministry, 50 days ago, a lot has transpired in that short period. This reinforces my inaugural assertion and conviction that you do not need to be a magician to perform.

“I do believe that a determined and motivated team will always find a way to mobilise resources and deliver on its assignment. We have put in place goal delivery machinery, which is operational.

“With this in place, many of our lingering challenges in the Power Sector are now being addressed in a Methodical, systematic, and Proactive manner.

“We are working tirelessly as we explore opportunities that will, in the short term, deliver the much-desired quick wins whilst still focusing on the long-term objectives of increasing the available Power, improving the quality of services, attracting the much-needed investment, promoting efficiency, competition and growth and lastly ensuring transparency and accountability in the value-chain of the Power Sector.

“The Ministry is intensifying performance monitoring of the licensees and the licensing regime, especially their revised Performance Improvement Plans (PIP), to have a better understanding of why some critical stakeholders are performing below expectation.

“We shall be taking a careful and detailed look at issues of policy, capacity and the technical requirement, amongst other things.
“One very critical concern that we must address in this performance monitoring process is to find out if the terms for granting of licenses were onerous.

“Do we need additional laws and or regulations to enable the Sector to perform optimally? These are some of the critical concerns that the performance monitoring will highlight.

“The outcomes will also hopefully point at ways to address these concerns and challenges.

“It is well known the primary policy aim of this administration is to provide stable, good quality, reliable and affordable electricity for the people of Nigeria for domestic and industrial usage.
“The Electric Power Sector Reform Act of March 2005 is quite revolutionary.

“We are working on its full implementation to match up with the huge sums invested by this administration to realise our objectives in the Sector, which are very much achievable.

“Against the backdrop of the reality that the delivery of electric power is a multi-sectoral undertaking, specific areas of conflict and tensions within the power industry value chain are being harmonised for greater synergy which will bring about a wholesome alignment of responsibilities within the governance system of the power sector. It is this new mindset of cooperation for optimal performance that we are bringing on board.
“So far, I am happy to inform you that everyone is in alignment with this mentality. There are ongoing conversations within the power value chain.
“Stakeholders are talking and cooperating and in so doing, bridging the observed disconnect within the Sector.

“It must be clearly stated that within this value chain, some responsibilities are by virtue of the EPSRA performed by our private sector partners and other agencies of Government. These partners are being more closely monitored and sometimes given the needed nudge in the right direction to achieve our objectives.

“Hopefully, we will soon begin to experience the imminent turnaround in the power sector.
We are determined to deal with some policy issues, the legal and regulatory bottlenecks, and the human factors involved in the implementation and coordination of the power sector’s road map. Though clearly a work in progress, let me assure you that the viability of the Sector is not in doubt. As much as it is a capital-intensive sector and currently in need of a massive injection of fresh capital, we are making steady progress”.