Geometric Power Project is for All Nigerians, not just Abia State- Adelabu

Steve Unegbu, Umuahia

The Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu has disclosed that the Geometric Power Plant commissioned in Aba by His Excellency President Ahmed Bola Tinubu is for all Nigerians, not just Abia State.

Chief Adelabu who made this known at the Presidential Commissioning of the Aba Integrated Power Project in the Osisioma industrial Layout ,Aba , said the capacity of the power plant was 188MW,with 141MW fully built and commissioned,added that any power that the Aba people and businesses cannot absorb would be delivered to the national grid,in that way supplying additional electricity in various parts of Nigeria.

He explained  that the Project is unique because it is integrated and consists basically of the power generation company named Geometric Power Aba Limited, and APL Electric Company Ltd and that  the two  companies are licensed by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), to generate and distribute electricity respectively, within the Aba Ring Fenced Area, which covers nine (9) of the seventeen (17) Local Government Areas in Abia State.

According to him,”

It is no coincidence that Aba IPP is being inaugurated less than one year after I assumed office as The Honorable Minister of Power. The President Bola Tinubu Administration has always appreciated the knowledge, skills, competence, and patriotism of the founder and chairman of Geometric Power, Professor Bart Nnaji, CON, NNOM, FAS, one of my worthy predecessors. At the retreat held for senior officials shortly after the current Administration came into being in the middle of last year, President Bola Tinubu, GCFR, personally ensured that Professor Nnaji was invited to speak to members of the new federal executive team on how to improve electricity supply throughout Nigeria within a short period significantly. Professor Nnaji was the only former minister so invited.

“As the presiding Minister, I was recently invited to foster the necessary cordial relationship between APLE and some agencies under my Ministry, making sure that both parties mutually realized their objectives. In my intervention, I was very mindful of the need to encourage a fully Nigerian company and at the same time guide the government agencies on how to be firm and supportive concerning implementing government policies and regulations.

”  It is regrettable that such an impactful and strategic power project like Aba IPP could be allowed to be in limbo for nine years due to the avoidable manner in which the privatization of the power sector took place. It would not have suffered so long if the Tinubu Administration had been in office earlier. The suffering is now behind us. The future matters more. I assure you that under the President Tinubu administration, we continue to provide a friendly environment to thrive and targeted government assistance to Aba IPP, and other serious-minded power project developers in Nigeria”

He  appealed  to all Nigerians, not just the people of Aba and the environs, to make greater efforts to secure the power infrastructure,noting that critical infrastructure has become very expensive to provide, maintain, and replace and that  Privatization was a way for the government to leverage the enormous funds in the private sector to provide critical infrastructure, therefore, the onus is on every citizen to report to security agents or community leaders vandals who damage infrastructure that benefits the public

He further appealed  to all Nigeriansto  pay their electricity bill as and when due,avoid meter bypassing as well as stop the practice of what is known as “hooking up” to steal power and the issue attacking electricity distribution company officials performing their legitimate duties of revenue collection, said it would help them remain in business

He informed that the Federal Government would watch the performance of Aba IPP closely, said “If it succeeds in its mission, we will use it as a business model for a radical improvement of the Nigerian power sector” he said