Nigeria is currently paying liquidation damages to the West African Power Pool (WAPP) for its inability to meet its gas supply contract value to 14 of the 15 countries of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
Although the amount is not stated, Beks Dagogo-Jack, chairman, Presidential Task Force on Power, explained that the Federal Government failed to fully meet its contract percentage because it chose to first address soaring domestic demand.
“Currently, we are paying liquidation damages. We are giving them less than 60 percent of the contract value, and the country is paying for not giving them what the contract says, simply because we want to meet domestic demand. So, it’s not like we are giving them 100 percent,” he said.
Designed to ensure regional power systems integration and realisation of a Regional Electricity Market (REM), WAPP is a specialised institution of the ECOWAS which covers 14 of the 15 countries of the regional economic community, including Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.
With 26 member cominvestpanies, WAPP is made up of public and private generation, transmission and distribution companies involved in the operation of electricity in West Africa.
Urging Nigerians to support government to ensure the right gas pricing, Dagogo-Jack said it was good to establish the right understanding of the issues that are ongoing.
“The issues that are ongoing are commercial in nature; extremely commercial in nature,” he said. “We have to surgically remove from our head the concept of some ubiquitous government that can come in and make something happen. That’s where we are running away from. We should just run away from there.”
TEDDY NWANUNOBI, Abuja
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