The Federal Government has announced that the Siemens AG power project, which aims to increase Nigeria’s power delivery capacity to 25,000 megawatts, will be restarted in the first quarter of 2021.
Abubakar Aliyu, the Minister of Power, stated on Thursday that the German firm, Siemens AG, would begin operations in Nigeria soon and that project activities would begin in earnest.
Siemens is assisting Nigeria in increasing its electricity capacity to 25,000MW through the Presidential Power Initiative.
However, the project has been stalled since an agreement was reached on August 31, 2018 in Abuja between the German firm and the Federal Government.
Nigeria and Germany had agreed to collaborate in order to address challenges in the country’s power sector and expand capacity for future power needs.
Aliyu told journalists at a Power Correspondent Association of Nigeria workshop that efforts were being made to get the project up and running.
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Nigeria’s power generation capacity is currently around 4,500MW, with the Siemens deal aiming to increase this to 25,000MW.
“The Presidential Power Initiative, which began in 2021 and is expected to be completed in 2025,” Aliyu, who was represented by Minister of State for Power, Goddy Jedy-Agba, said.
“The phases cover the upgrading and expansion of transmission and distribution networks, improving access to affordable, efficient, and reliable electricity, and providing support for the country’s industrial and economic growth.”
“The first phase, which began in 2021, will last 10 months, with the ultimate goal of increasing to 7,000MW.” So far, there has been no hiccup because the team is in the pre-engineering phase.
“In the second phase, availability will be increased to 11,000MW, and in the third phase, availability will be increased to 25,000MW.”
Aliyu stated that given Siemens AG’s accomplishment of a similar plan in Egypt, as well as its reputation as an international giant in power sector related engagements, the Nigeria Electricity Roadmap was strongly believed to be possible and achievable.
