The Federal Executive Council on Monday approved 262.75 billion Naira (€161.33 million) for the first phase of the Presidential Power Initiative, otherwise known as the Siemens Project. This project will focus on building and upgrading electrical substations in five different locations: Onitsha, Offa, Abeokuta, Ayede, and Sokoto.
According to The Punch, power Minister Adebayo Adelabu shared these details during a press briefing at the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja. He explained that this approval came after the project’s pilot phase was 80% complete.
On 1 December 2023, Nigeria and Germany signed an agreement to add 12,000 MegaWatts of electricity to the national power grid. The signing happened during the United Nations Climate Change Summit (COP28) in Dubai, with President Bola Tinubu and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz present. The contract’s original roots go back to 2018, during former President Muhammadu Buhari’s time in office.
Adelabu said: “There were two approvals for the Federal Ministry of Power. The first was an approval for the contract award for engineering, procurement, construction and financing for implementing the 330/132 KV and 132/33 KV substations upgrade under Phase I of the presidential initiative, popularly known as the Siemens project.”
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He further explained that the first phase of the project involves upgrading 14 existing substations and building 21 new substations across the country. The first batch includes five specific substations: “Onitsha, 330/133 KV substation under the Enugu electricity distribution company; two, Offa 132/33 KV substation under the Ibadan electricity company. There is the new Abeokuta 330/132 KV substation. We have Ayede 330/132 KV substation. And lastly, Sokoto 132/33 KV substation.”
In addition to the power project, the council also approved purchasing an office complex for the Nigeria Electricity Liability Management Company (NELMCO). Adelabu noted: “The office complex approved for outright purchase is at Plot 2148, Cadastra Zone A02 Wuse 1 District Abuja. The cost of this acquisition is N1.7bn, including 7.5 per cent VAT.”
The minister emphasised that the timing of this approval was crucial. The commercial terms discussed during the recent German presidential visit were set to expire on 28 December. The project has faced delays in the past, including interruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic and government transitions.
“We expect that this will further improve and stabilise the transmission segment of the power sector value chain in no distant future on completion,” Adelabu concluded.
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