The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Funke Osibodu

  • Five-year after, BEDC to reconnect Ode-Aye community

    After months of rigorous engagement and rapprochement between the government of Ondo State and the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC), all is now set for the re-energizing of the ancient town of Ode-Aye, one of the major communities that have suffered electricity deprivation in Southern senatorial district of Ondo State.

    It should be recalled that governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, had earlier issued a stern directive through his Technical Committee on Power that everything must be done to end the unacceptable darkness that have enveloped the region in the past twelve years .

    That charge has now paid off as the Managing Director of the Disco, Mrs. Funke Osibodu, who spoke through the Regional Head of BEDC in Ondo and Ekiti States, Mrs. Kunbi Labiyi, has charged the company’s field staff to leave no stone unturned in ensuring that Ode-Aye people can enjoy electricity starting from the 2018 Christmas celebration.

    Officials of the Office of Public Utilities (OPU) in the Governor’s Office who visited the town on inspection, as representatives of the state government, confirmed that rehabilitation works on the distribution infrastructure in Ode-Aye has now been completed including the reconstruction of 5 sub-stations that were earlier vandalized.

    Once Ode-Aye is re-energized, it would bring to four the numbers of communities in the South that now have electricity in 2018.

    Read Also: BEDC, TCN settle rift

    Between August and October, Akeredolu energized all the houses in Ebute-Ipare and Aboto towns in Ilaje local government area of the state as well as majority of the houses in Igbobini town in Ese-odo local government area using solar power under the state’s SHoPU scheme.

    The Special Adviser to the Governor on Public Utilities, Engr. Tunji Ariyomo, explained to reporters that over the past 15 months, the governor has worked behind the scene with agencies of the federal government such as the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC).

    He said “We are now gradually seeing the result of such behind the scene intervention. This year, Mr. Governor has commissioned an additional 60MWA transformer in Akure to strengthen transmission in both Ondo and Ekiti states.

    “The NDPHC, where one of our sons, Engr. Ife Oyedele, is an Executive Director is now providing unprecedented rehabilitation services in parts of Ondo South while some of our PPP partners are now attaining financial closures in multi-billion Naira mini-grid and on-grid power intervention projects in Ondo State”.

    “By fixing Ode-Aye this Christmas, it takes us a step closer to permanently resolving power supply to Okitipupa which is the largest load centre in Ondo South”.

     

  • BEDC, TCN settle rift for consumers’ satisfaction

    The Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC), and the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) Benin Zone, have resolved to work in synergy for the purpose of satisfying customers in the power sector.
    Both firms held a joint coordination meeting where they agreed to a resolution that they would continue to work together as critical partners in the power sector value chain that are dependent on each other.
    The joint meeting  held as TCN prepared to move a replacement transformer from Irrua to Benin City to tackle power outage affecting some parts of the metropolis.
    In her address, Managing Director of BEDC, Mrs. Funke Osibodu noted that the reality of the power sector value chain was that none could survive without the other.
    Osibodu advised power sector operators against dabbling into the political undertone of power.

    Read Also: TCN cable explosion causes blackouts in Edo

    She stated that it was better they pool resources together in the network to assist and avoid political undertone.
    The BEDC CEO said there was need for the two parties to work together to achieve customer satisfaction and
    advised both TCN and BEDC staffers to be careful by respecting the business and technical components of their operations.
    According to her, “Without customer demand there is no disco, without TCN passing power to the disco there is nothing to distribute and without the Gencos there is no generation. No one leg of the value chain if missing can function without the other hence all parts are important.
    General Manager, Benin Zone of TCN, Engr. Jimi Adetola, said there must be synergy between the BEDC and the TCN.
    He said the meeting should address operational issues affecting both parties who are members of the power sector value chain with a view to finding a common ground in resolving them to favour the customers.

  • Nigeria receives $64.63m from sale of power to Benin, Niger Republics

    The Federal Government has generated $64.6 million revenue from sale of electricity to neighbouring Benin and Niger republics, Minister for Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, has said.

    Fashola gave the figure in an address presented at the 21st meeting of the Power Sector Stakeholders Conference in Asaba.

    The minister said that the government had made efforts to recover the huge debt owed by its international customers to reduce liquidity challenges in the power sector.

    “Only recently, the federal government received the sum of $64.630.65 million from the republics of Benin and Niger for electricity power supplied to these two nations.

    “It is our belief that our effort at recovering some of these debts owed by our international customers will help towards the reducing liquidity challenges we face in the power sector,” Fashola said.

    Fashola said the monthly stakeholders’ conference was an avenue to assess and evaluate the progress of collective efforts at boosting power supply in the country.

    He listed some of the major challenges facing the sector to include estimated billing and inadequate prepaid meters for customers.

    The minister also used the occasion to inaugurate the New Asaba Injection Substation, a 215 MVA substation expected to boost power supply to parts of Delta.

    Fashola said: “With today’s commissioning of the New Asaba 215 MVA  interjection substation, there will now be more electricity for the people of Bonsac, Akwuebulu, Oduke and all other surrounding areas.”

    The stressed that the federal government was working assiduously towards connecting rural areas to the national grid and appealed to people in rural areas to be patient.

    “To those communities that electricity power has not reached across the country, I implore you to be patient, because we have certainly not forgotten you.

    “I want to assure you that one by one, we will get to you so that every community in Nigeria can enjoy electricity supply,” he said.

    Earlier in an address, Mrs. Funke Osibodu, the Managing Director, Benin Electricity Distribution Company ( BEDC ), lauded the initiators of the monthly stakeholders conference.

    She said that the meeting allowed stakeholders to critically analyse their challenges and efforts towards achieving a common goal for the development of the sector.

    “This forum affords all of us an avenue to interact, understand each other and evaluate our common efforts and challenges towards achieving the goal of equitable power distribution to our people.

    “Here at the Benin Electricity Distribution Company, we have started making progress in the area of load management and we have also improved our billing system,” Osibodu said.

    The BEDC boss stated that the company, with franchise area covering Edo, Delta and Ondo states, had energised several communities that have been without electricity for years.

    She listed Ibusa and Ogwashi-Uku communities in Delta as some of the communities that BEDC has successfully energised.

    In his address, Gov. Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta, lauded BEDC for the inauguration and official switch-on of the New Asaba Interjection Substation, saying it would boost power supply in the area.

    Okowa, represented by the state Commissioner for Energy, Mr. Newworld Sufugha, expressed urged BEDC to focus on providing prepaid meters to its customers.

    NAN

  • Oshiomhole protests PHCN ‘extortion’

    Oshiomhole protests PHCN ‘extortion’

    Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole has kicked against the N750 monthly fixed charge collected by the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC).

    He said it amounts to extortion and exploitation of electricity consumers.

    The governor spoke at a meeting with the management team of BEDC, led by Mrs Funke Osibodu, the Benin Forum, led by Chief David Edebiri and Civil Society Organisations.

    “Madam, you will recall the day I first received you in my office. I think I mentioned that it is important that you improve on your service delivery to consumers and failure to do so will spark off a revolt from consumers. This is exactly what is happening today.

    “As the people’s representative, I cannot be quiet because it is certain that what is being done in Edo does not exist in other states.”