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Tag: PHCN

  • Jonathan okays N384b for PHCN staff entitlements

    Jonathan okays N384b for PHCN staff entitlements

    The Federal Government yesterday approved N384 billion for the settlement of gratuities and entitlements of the over 54,000 displaced staff of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN).

    They were relocated following the unbundling of the nation’s power sector. The workers’ union had engaged the Federal Government in a protracted negotiation over the on-going reforms in the sector.

    The Minister of Labour, Chief Emeka Nworgu, disclosed the approval while briefing reporters at the end of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting in Abuja.

    Nworgu, who spoke in the company of the Minister of Power, Professor Chinedu Nebo, the Acting Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Benjanmi Ezra Dikki and the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, said the payments would commence immediately.

    He said President Goodluck Jonathan’s approval was in accordance with the agreement signed in the course of negotiations between labour and Government towards resolving the issue once and for all.

    He said: “I want to inform you that the agreed benefits accruing to the staff of PHCN in the last negotiation between government and the Labour Unions have been approved by President Goodluck Jonathan. Payment of the agreed sum will commence immediately and that will bring to an end the issue of non-payment of benefits.

    “So, we enjoin labour unions in the power sector to work closely with the Ministry of Power in the payment of these benefits as agreed. The process will commence tomorrow (today) and I want to assure them that this will bring to an end the labour issue in the sector.

    “This payment is only for PHCN staff, and in determining who should benefit, labour and government conducted a biometric exercise. The number of people benefiting is clearly defined by this agreement,” he added.

    “The total package is approximately N384 billion in full payments of all outstanding benefits that we agreed upon. It will be done within the best principle of transparency and accountability.”

    Speaking at the press conference, the Minister of Power, Prof Chinedu Nebo expressed appreciation to the PHCN staff for ensuring availability of power as he urged them not to relent in the efforts to complete the remaining reform processes.

    He said “We are very grateful to the staff of PHCN for all that they have done to make sure that power is available all over the country. We do hope that they will continue to serve patriotically to ensure that no hitch is put in place in the realisation of the entire power sector roadmap.”

    “We want to make sure that eventually Nigerians get uninterrupted power supply and that is exactly what the roadmap for the power sector would address.” He stated

     

  • PHCN workers block Perm Sec’s access to headquarters

    PHCN workers block Perm Sec’s access to headquarters

    The Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) workers’ union yesterday temporarily hindered the access of the Permanent Secretary, Mrs.  Dere Awosika into  the premises at Maitama.

    However, the intervention of the Managing Director, Hussein Labo, saved the day.

    The Nation however, learnt that Awosika, who was due for retirement yesterday, stopped at the Transition Company of Nigeria  section of the PHCN, where the PHCN boss eventually met with her.

    The uprising, according to a source, was intended to ascertain the mission of the Permanent Secretary, who was in company of the Managing Director of the Nigeria Electricity Liability Management Company (NELMCO), Sam Agbogun.

    The source said: “We allowed them into the premise after the PHCN Managing Director explained to us that the Permanent Secretary decided to come over, since she is retiring today (yesterday) and there was no work at the Federal Secretariat (due to the Armed Forces remembrance day celebration) to brief him on the modalities she has put in place for the payment of PHCN staff salaries.

    “We told them to hasten up with the payments process,so there was nothing serious.”

    Attempt to confirm the incident from the Awosika was to no avail  but a source from the ministry who spoke in confidence said : “it is a lie because the Perm Sec has been around for meetings.”

    It will be recalled that the workers are yet to receive their severance package as agree with the Federal Government on December 11 last year.

     

  • ‘How to achieve stable power through reduced system collapse’

    ‘How to achieve stable power through reduced system collapse’

    System collapses have been responsible for some of the power outages experienced and once it occurs, it affects a substantial number of areas and customers across the country. What are the causes and way forward? EMEKA UGWUANYI, Assistant Editor (Energy) examines the development.

    Background

    The power supply chain consists of generation, transmission and distribution but customers of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) oftentimes blame power outage on the distribution companies, which however, is the nearest of the chain to them but a chunk of the outages were as a result of system collapse from the transmission division.

    The transmission arm of the power supply chain is very vital because it is responsible for taking electricity to various parts of the country, homes and offices. Unlike the generation and distribution segments, which alternatives can easily be provided when they develop faults, the transmission is not so in view of the grid system Nigeria runs. Therefore, whenever there is partial or total system collapse, substantial number of customers and areas are affected.

    To buttress how strategic the transmission division is to the power supply value chain, the former Minister of Power, Prof. Barth Nnaji, had in April last year, sacked three top officers of PHCN including the former Managing Director, Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Akinwumi Bada; alongside Head, Operator of the Nigerian Electricity Market, Uzoma Achinanya; and Executive Director, Human Resources, PHCN, Olushoga Muyiwa.

    The TCN was sacked on accusation that there were several and consecutive system collapses within the period, which regularly threw the country into darkness. It was believed that there was connivance among the top officers in sabotaging government’s efforts to fix the power sector.

     

    Causes of system collapse

    The Executive Director (System Operator), Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Mr Jonathan Ndiagwalukwe, an engineer, who spoke at a power summit in Lagos highlighted the importance of transmission arm of the electricity supply chain.

    In his paper entitled: Frequency control and grid stability, he said transmission originated disturbances like the tripping of critical tie-lines, wiping out of distribution loads during rainstorm, which result in high system frequency, inadequate transmission network redundancies for parallel and alternate power flows, major equipment failure that sometimes result in loss of part or the entire system, inadequate available generation for scheduling, sudden shutdown of generating units on fault or fuel (gas) supply problem, and inadequate or total absence of Spinning Reserve (unused capacity of generating units, which can be delivered without manual intervention) can cause system collpase.

    Others include absence or insufficient number of machines with functional Automatic Governor Control, poor SCADA/IED coverage of the grid, absence of protective earth wire on major load lines owing to vandalism and little maintenance coordination between generation, transmission and Nigeria Gas Company

    He maintained that supply of power at the right quantity helps maintain stable frequency while otherwise would cause system collapse. He also noted that a well maintained distribution network which ensure that the facilities are not overgrown by vegetation which can lead to snapping of wires if branches of trees fall on them (lines) and poles not destroyed by the slightest rainstorm, among others would ensure stable frequency.

    He said: “The quality of electric power supply is defined within the permissible variation in the statutory requirements of frequency and voltage. System stability is a subject of great interest to the system operator because it affects electricity supply quality and reliability.

    “Frequency is a measure of the speed of the generating unit’s shaft (rotor). It is measure in cycles per second. A 2-pole generator, for example, producing an output frequency of 50Hz, has an engine speed of 3,000 revolutions per minute (rpm). For a generating unit the revolution per minute (N) of the prime mover for a given system frequency f is given by N=120f/P where P is the number of poles.

    “An electric power grid is a system of electric power generation and transmission equipment/devices, including the lines – interconnected in a mesh (network) for efficient delivery of electricity. Power systems are often interconnected to: improve reliability and quality of power supply, reduce the spinning reserve requirement of individual systems and utilize the synergy offered by grid control and optimization devices.

    “In power systems, generation, transmission and distribution are interconnected at their interface points and frequency is common throughout the interconnection. If load and generation are matched, frequency is 50Hz. If load exceeds generation, frequency is below 50Hz and if generation exceeds load, frequency is above 50Hz and any large interconnected power system is composed of several generators synchronously connected.

    “Therefore, a perfect real or active power balance: is active generation equals active demand including losses. This ensures constant speed and frequency of operation but unfortunately, the load impressed on the system does fluctuate, more so, in a random fashion. It is, therefore, virtually impossible to accomplish equilibrium of active generation and active demand.

    “An excess or deficiency in active power generation will always manifest. This mismatch normally results in frequency fluctuation which could culminate in system instability.

    “In practice, we seek to achieve this balance through manual load shedding, generation scheduling or by the appropriate application of frequency relays. At steady state system, frequency is 50Hz in Nigeria and most countries of Africa and it is 60Hz in some countries, for example, the United States of America. Frequency control objective revolves around maintenance of the equilibrium between generation and load. This, in system operation parlance, is termed power balance.”

    On frequency operating limits, he said that the Grid Code stipulates the following: Nominal Frequency: 50Hz and Steady State: 50Hz +/- 0.5% [49.75Hz – 50.25Hz] and Under System Stress: 50Hz +/- 2.5% (48.75 – 51.25 Hz).

    He said that if there high frequency, it damages apparatus and customer equipment, causes generator over speed hazard and also injurious to transformer because (volt/Hz ratio exceeded).

    He said that a power system operates in normal state when system frequency and voltages are close to their nominal values, while maintaining scheduled load flow profile. “In this mode of operation, control is required to: maintain scheduled voltages and frequency, maintain scheduled tie line flows and obtain economic generation. He also explained the alert mode, emergency mode, and restorative mode

     

    System stability

    He said that a system that is able to develop restoring forces sufficient to overcome the disturbing forces – and restore equilibrium – is said to be stable. A system is termed insecure when this capability does not exist. Power system stability problems are commonly classified into two categories: Steady state and Transient.

    Steady state frequency controls take care of minor disturbances (variations) in the generation-demand equilibrium. System is in a steady state when all the required parameters impacting on System Operations exist like adequate generation, operating reserves and healthy transmission network.

    Transient stability problems deal with the effects of large, sudden system disturbances such as: Line faults, sudden switching of lines or the sudden application or removal of loads, loss of a major generating unit at a power station.

    Spinning reserve, he reiterated, is one key tool for managing system frequency and keeping the system stable. Experience from the operation of the Nigerian Grid between 15th January 2011 and February 2012 when there was reasonably sufficient Spinning Reserve clearly showed that. He said that Spinning Reserve should be taken seriously as a tool in managing system frequency for the attainment of a more stable grid.

     

    Solution

    Ndiagwalukwe said that although the Nigeria power system is without doubt problematic but there are ways to ensure more stable and secure grid. These include reduction in tripping of critical tie lines by having a well maintained transmission line trace as well as properly coordinated and discriminative line protection schemes.

    Others are replacement of vandalized sky wires that expose the lines to lightning strikes and replacement of obsolete transmission equipment to reduce the incidence of equipment failure to the barest minimum.

    He said well maintained distribution network with properly tensioned lines, free from over grown vegetation, broken wooden cross arms replaced and lean poles stood erect would forestall sudden large scale loss of distribution loads at the slightest rainstorm with its attendant high system frequency.

    He added that sudden shutdown of generating units on loss of gas pressure can be checked by developing robust and well maintained gas supply system

    According to him, deployment of spinning reserve on units that have been identified to have functional automatic Governor Controls are vital adding that power stations capable of doing this are those at Egbin, Ughelli, Olorunsogo NIPP and Kainji.

    He noted that the on-going SCADA reactivation, which would be completed soonest, would help to avail the System Operator the benefits of Energy Management System (EMS) and effective use of Automatic Generation Control (AGC), which can only be offered by a fully working SCADA system.

    He said also vital is a coordinated maintenance programme involving the Nigerian Gas Company (NGC), generation and transmission divisions as well as construction of additional relief/redundancy lines to the critical 330Kv Onitsha – Benin and Alaoji – Onitsha single circuit lines.

    The creation of more loops in the grid, such as Alaoji – Ikot Ekpene – Ugwuaji – New Heaven 330kV loop, are important, he said, adding that these projects, which are on-going, will, on completion, make the grid more robust, flexible and resilient to system instability.

    He noted that building power stations in the North would improve both voltage stability in the area, especially the Northeast.

  • TCN warns against bush burning around installations

    The Transmission Company of Nigeria on Thursday warned the general public against bush burning around the Power Holding Company of Nigeria installations.

    The Executive Director, Systems Operations of the TCN, Mr. Jonathan Ndiagwaralukwe, gave the warning in a chat with the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja.

    Ndiagwaralukwe said that bush burning was having negative consequences on PHCN infrastructure and installations.

    “Our major challenge is that the harmatan breeze spreads fire faster and such fire can destroy the infrastructure that was built by the government for the benefit of the people.

    “We call on people to report to the police anybody who engages in bush burning around PHCN’s installations,’’ he said.

    Ndiagwaralukwe told NAN that the Kainji, Egbim, Ugheli and National Integrated Power Projects (NIPPs) in Olorunshogo, which will come on stream very soon, would produce a total of 300 MW of electricity.

    He said that the 300mw that would be generated would be used to stabilise the nation’s power supply.

     

  • Discos, telcos, others may list on NSE

    Discos, telcos, others may list on NSE

    • Targets $1tr for NSE, says Oteh

    Distribution companies created from the unbundling of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) may be listed on the stock exchange within five years, the Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Ms. Arumna Oteh, has said.

    Ms. Oteh, who spoke in an interview in Abuja, said the Nigerian Capital Market is targeting a $1 trillion market value by 2016.

    The government approved bids this year by companies, including Siemens AG (SIE), Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEP) and Transnational Corporation (TRANSCORP) to buy stakes in utilities to curb power cuts which are a daily occurrence.

    Requiring the companies to list shares would make the exchange more representative of the country’s economy, Ms. Oteh said

    The unbundling of PHCN resulted in the creation of 18 successor firms , including 11 electricity distribution companies- Abuja, Benin, Eko, Enugu, Ibadan, Ikeja, Jos, Kano, Port Harcourt, Yola, Kaduna and six generation companies- Geregu, Kainji, Shiroro, Ughelli, Sapele, Afam and the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).

    Ms. Oteh, said only about 17 per cent of Nigeria’s economy is reflected on the market, adding that the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has attempted to encourage listings and bring bigger trading volumes by introducing short selling, market making and securities lending this year.

    She said the bourse has a current value of $54.6 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

    She said: “Within a five year period, these companies will be expected to list,” citing discussions with the Bureau of Public Enterprises, which is responsible for the privatisation process. She explained that the development is intended to correct earlier flaws that kept telecom firms from being listed on the NSE. “We cannot make the mistake that we made with telecoms, which were granted cellular licenses in 2001 and weren’t required to list their shares,” she said.

    None of the main four telecommunications companies-Globacom, Airtel, Etisalat and MTN Group Limited. (MTN), are listed on the Nigerian exchange. Ms. Oteh however said the listing was optional, adding, “we are not looking to have listing made compulsory for them now,”

    The SEC’s boss, expressed her desire to have Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA), which is Nigeria’s biggest private oil company, represented on the market, saying it makes “good business sense” for it to be on the bourse. She argued that a little divestment by the oil firms in favour of their host communities could elicit support for the firms, and in the process stem vandalisation of oil pipelines.

    “They need to invest and invest aggressively, so I don’t even agree that there’s sufficient cash flow that they need financing. But more importantly, people can have empathy for these companies. We’ve had vandalisation of pipelines, we’ve had base stations being blown up. If people in those neighborhoods had even one or two shares in these companies, they would protect these base stations or pipelines like hawks,” she stated.

    She said SEC will probably approve rules for Islamic-compliant Sukuk bonds in the first quarter of next year, with a number of Nigerian states, including Osun waiting to issue debt.

    She explained that while states have been selling conventional bonds to finance projects such as infrastructure development, roughly half of Nigeria’s 160 million population who are Muslim are unable to participate.

    “For me it’s a financial inclusion issue, you have a very high population of Muslims in Nigeria and it will just ensure we comply with some of their religious requirements,” she said.

    She said Lagos State, issued N80 billion ($509 million) bond in November at a coupon price of 14.5 percent. Rivers state, in the oil-producing south, may sell a 100 billion-naira bond next year to fund its budget deficit, Standard & Poor’s said .

    Ms. Oteh said three trading groups either have or are about receiving SEC approval to start retail bonds trading next year, to give the general public access to fixed income securities now dominated by institutional buyers. These are the Lagos bourse, the Financial Market Dealers Association, which groups banks, and the National Association of Security Dealers.

    “What we want is that most trading, including over-the- counter, is within our purview,” she said. “We’re very excited because it certainly brings more transparency to the market, it brings more depth,” she stated.

  • Customers decry PHCN’s ‘crazy’ bills

    Customers decry PHCN’s ‘crazy’ bills

    The billing system of the electricity distribution companies of the unbundled Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) has gone arwy and customers are complaining, writes EMEKA UGWUANYI.

    Customers of the electricity distribution companies unbundled from the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) are angry over what they described as unreasonable bills from the utility provider.

    The customers, particularly those who don’t use prepaid meters, are paying through their noses even when the expected uninterrupted power supply promised by the government remains a dream.

    Following complaints from the customers, our correspondent visited some undertakings and business units of the distribution companies in Lagos to ascertain the cause of the recent exorbitant bills. It was discovered that customers affected in the high billing include those in Residential One and Two (R1&2) category of MYTO 11 (Multi-Year-Tariff-Order), who according to the Electricity Power Sector Reform Act, are not only expected to pay low tariff, but also be protected from undue high tariff in order to enable them have access to power supply.

    At the undertaking and business unit levels, half of the customers acc osted came with complaints of high billings. Some of the bills were as high as N30,000 for households of two and three bedroom flats, who don’t even use air-conditioners in their houses.

    Some of the customers said the high billing started from September. For instance, Ajibola Akande who lives within the network of Festac Business Unit said in September he was billed N14,000, in October, over N18,000 and in November, ove N27,000. Also a customer under the Shomolu Buisness Unit, Mr. Julius Ogbonna said he got N14,000 in October and N29,000 in November. He said when he complained, he was asked to go and pay first so they (PHCN) would find a way of resolving future bills.

    The implication of this outrageous billing is that it might make customers lose confidence and trust in the power sector reform and promises of the government in making power affordable by low income earners, he added.

    Some of the officials of the Buisness Units who spoke in confidence to The Nation, said the marketers create a lot of problems for them by not reading the meters. They noted that even if customers have faulty meters or their meters are inaccessible, they (marketers) should endeavour and properly determine the consumption level of a customer before estimating his bill.

    “When we see customers mill around here, we don’t feel good because what we preach and expect to attain is commendable service delivery and customer satisfaction but we are working on resolving this issue of crazy billing but you know this cannot be achieved overnight,” they said.

    At the Quarterly Power Summit in Lagos organised by the Power Ministry, the Chief Executive Officer, Benin Electricity Distribution Company Effiong Umoren also highlighted on the issue of tariff. He said that it is very imperative to get the issue tariff right in order to get the privatisation and reform aspirations right.

    In his paper entitled: Market performance under the implementation of MYTO 11, prospects and challenges: Operator’s perspectives,’ he noted that the tariff structure needs to be slightly adjusted.

    He said: “Unless we are banking on periodical government bailout, the tariff structure is one single component in the power equation that decides the survival or otherwise of the electricity supply chain, we must get it right.”

    He identified major features of MYTO 11 as increase in energy and fixed charges across the various tariff class, abolished payment for meters and connection fees by customers, abolished meter maintenance fees effective from December 2011, disallowed payment of statutory charges for maximum demand (MD) customers: inspection and survey fees, testing fees, metering and commissioning fees, reduced tariff classes from 19 to 14, merger of all the low energy users in each class: R, C, D, and A and collapse of all charges in each category into only two components: Fixed charge and Energy charge and removal of KVA component from MD bills.

    He also noted the major benefits of MYTO 11, which he said discourages fraudulent classification of customers from R3 to R2 by under declaration of load demand and reduction in energy theft. He said that due to free meters, customers stealing energy are now coming out for free meters and regularisation of supply status.

    On challenges of MYTO 11, he identified among others, the unrealistically high fixed charge of N139,466 for a wide segment of D2 customers: small scale industrial customer, saw millers, aluminium and steel product makers, confectionary manufacturers adding that on high fixed charge of N25,018 on R3, “we have some instances where fixed charge is up to three times the energy charge; particularly on “seasonal and weekend” residential houses.

    He said that kva as a component of a tariff encourages more efficient machinery, thus improving system voltage profile noting that its abolition in MYTO II will increase ‘power factor indiscipline’ putting avoidable burden on terminal equipments. Power factor efficiency requires additional investment on the part of customer. There is no more incentives for this investment, he added.

    To discourage energy theft or illegal connection, the stakeholders said the tariff structure should be properly addressed and has to start from elimination of crazy billing.

  • FG, PHCN staff agree on severance package

    FG, PHCN staff agree on severance package

    Power Holding Company of Nigeria workers won a major battle on Tuesday midnight as the Federal Government agreed to sign an agreement with the workers’ representatives on the payment of their severance packages, pension and gratuity.

    Based on the agreement, a three- month salary in lieu of notice will be paid to all active employees of PHCN that had served for more than 10 years, while those that had been in service for less than 10 years will get one month salary.

    The disagreement over the workers’ severance package had remained the major setback in the privatization of the PHCN and the implementation of the Power Sector Reform Act 2005.

    The two parties had been involved in discussions and negotiations since May last year, with the aim of resolving the dispute.

    The Tuesday’s meeting took place in the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim.

    It was attended by Senator Anyim, Minister of State for Finance, Hajiya Zainab Kuchi, Minister of Labour and Productivity, Chief Emeka Wogu and the acting Director General, Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Mr. Benjamin Dikki, who signed on behalf of the Federal Government.

    Also in attendance were the President General, Trade Union Congress (TUC), Comrade Peter Esele , Deputy President, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Comrade Joe Ajaero, Deputy President, National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE), Comrade Isaac Abegye and President, Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies (SSAEAC), Comrade Bede Opara.

    Comrade Opara signed for the PHCN workers.

    Chief Wogu, who read the agreement, said total accrued gratuity as at June 30, 2012 will be paid to the workers in accordance with defined scheme stipulated in the PHCN 2010 condition of service.

    He added that a 15 per cent pension contributions will be paid from July 1, 2007 through June 30, 2012 in accordance with the provisions of the Pension Act 2004.

    It was also agreed that repatriation allowance will be paid as five per cent of Annual Pensionable Emolument.

     

  • Gunmen attack police station, banks, PHCN office in Auchi

    Gunmen attack police station, banks, PHCN office in Auchi

    Auchi, the major town in the northern part of Edo State, was under attack last night.

    Unknown gunmen, armed with sophisticated weapons and dynamites, stormed the polytechnic town between 5:30 and 6.30pm. They bombed a police station, the Etsako West Local Government secretariat, three banks and the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) office.

    An unspecified number of people were reportedly killed.

    The bombed banks were behind the Federal Polytechnic campus.

    The PHCN office on Alhaji Musa Street was bombed. The police station was set on fire along with some vehicles.

    A resident of the area where the PHCN office is located said the sheer force of the explosion brought down at least one gate and a fence in the neighbourhood. Several buildings lost louvres, windows and doors frames.

    A resident living directly behind the PHCN office said: “We are under siege; they just bombed PHCN office; we heard the police station has been razed and we are afraid because there’s a filling station nearby and if they bomb it, we will be in a bigger danger.”

    As at 8:35pm, our sources said the police engaged the invaders in a gun duel to prevent them from pushing ahead.

    A resident, Mr. Williams Oriaghe, posted on twitter at about 6:27 pm: “Gunshot all over Auchi town.” He followed up with another tweet at 6:55pm: “Gunshot still raining here in Auchi.”

    At 7pm, he said silence as of a grave yard had descended upon his part of the town.

    Residents were holed up inside their homes following the heavy bombardment.

    Another resident said on the telephone: “I am sitting somewhere now. We are hearing heavy bombardment.”

    Another said they were advised to stay indoors to avoid being hit by stray bullets.

    It was gathered that the gunmen first attacked a police station with dynamites and explosives.

    Some policemen were said to have died in the attack.

    Another source added that a combined team of policemen and soldiers had cordoned off roads leading out of the community.

    The source said the gunmen drove through villages, shooting sporadically.

    The Acting State Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Hurdi, said he was on his way to Auchi and would issue a report later.

    “I don’t want to lie about the incident. Call me later and I will brief you on the accurate information,” Hurdi said. But he could no longer be reached last night.

     

  • PHCN Official: Sokoto blasts NLC president, Omar, over beating claim

    PHCN Official: Sokoto blasts NLC president, Omar, over beating claim

    THE Sokoto State government has faulted the stand of the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Abdulwaheed Omar, over an alleged assault on a PHCN staff.

    According to it, Omar jumped into the fray without finding out the real cause of the matter.

    Sokoto State governor, Magatakarda Wamako, was alleged to have personally flogged Moses Osigwe, an engineer, and ordered his security aides to do same to Mallam Isyaku Daura and Mallam Nurudeen Muhammed.

    This has made the NLC to issue an ultimatum to the state government to apologise or face industrial action in the state.

    However, the state government through the Senior Special Assistant, Media, Mr Sani Umar has asked the leadership of the NLC to order an investigation into the matter rather than making unguarded statements based on hearsay or approach the law courts for redress.

    The trio was invited to the government house to explain the persistent lack of electricity in Wamako and other towns of the state for several months.

    According to the state government, Osigwe who had given the governor the impression that materials needed for the repairs may take years to come from PHCN’s store in Abuja had allegedly demanded for and received N17million from the state governor.

    “The invitation of the governor was against the backdrop of strident complaints from people across the length and breadth of the state over the lack of electricity. The dismally poor, erratic and near absence of electricity was particularly puzzling in the face of the numerous financial and other material assistance given by the state governor to provide electricity to the citizens,” Umar stressed.

    The state government said the NLC president should, “have been civil enough to order for investigation into the matter, rather than just making unguarded statements based on hearsay. He lied when he said electricity went off during a ceremony. We are talking of someone collecting N17million to restore electricity to Wamakko town but failed to do so and Mr. Abdulwaheed Omar is shielding him from public scrutiny.”

    Umar said the NLC president should be honourable enough as to provide evidence of where the PHCN workers were flogged, and which hospital treated them since he claimed that they were beaten to a state of coma.

    “It is important for the NLC to note that government owes nobody an apology. A fraud has been committed for which a management staff of PHCN is culpable and must be addressed. No amount of blackmail would make us waiver in our determination to seek redress for the people of Sokoto State who were subjected to unnecessary hardship and losses.

    The state government took exceptions to the utterances of the labour leader.

    “It is absolutely disgusting that a person entrusted with the leadership of Nigerian workers could decide to throw caution to the winds and be calling elected governor names. Sokoto people could not have made a mistake by electing Governor Wamakko on three occasions. The governor is of impeccable character and a distinguished gentleman. It is therefore, very uncharitable of the NLC president to suggest otherwise.”

     

  • Challenges before new owners of PHCN

    Challenges before new owners of PHCN

    A new era beckons in the power sector as new companies prepare to take over the electricity distribution companies being privatised by the Federal Government. For watchers, the issues facing the power sector are complex, dynamic, and frequently inter-related. DANIEL ESSIET looks at the challenges before the new operators

    The move to restructure the electricity distribution market and make it more competitive have led to emergence of new players in the field. Consequently, the sector will be moving into an era that will be marked by rapid technology change targeted at improving service delivery.

    Speaking with The Nation, the President, Nigerian Association of Energy Economists (NAEE), Prof Adeola Adenikinju, said the outlook for the supply of electricity has not been positive. So, he sees privatisation as a big step forward to improve power sector’s performance. He said the reforms have provided opportunities, which includes better ways to serve customers, greater customer satisfaction, improved reliability and new revenue streams.

    As new operators takeover, Nigerians expect sufficient supply of power to meet demand for years to come. Nevertheless, Adenikinju said sustaining and enhancing the adequacy of the power supply requires attention to an array of factors such as natural gas and aging infrastructure. With various components of the power system requiring upgrade or replacement, he said efforts will have to be made to address this pressing concern. Much of the power system infrastructure problems are legacy issues and the strategies for addressing aging infrastructure are aimed at supporting current and future needs.

    Adenikinju said the transition expected in the electricity market in the coming years presents a massive challenge to all parties and stakeholders involved in it. Critical challenges, he said would arise from specific issues that affect the regulation of electricity markets from a regulated to liberalised sectors. There are concerns such as security of power supply as well as boosting transmission corridors to provide adequate solutions.

    According to him, tackling these challenges, need to be handled in the most efficient manner. He noted that the transmission system is aging and many facilities will require replacement. In most areas, older, higher cost plants are used to produce higher levels of output. The maintenance costs and lost time for maintenance of older plants are also higher. Consequently, the output of electricity in the short run is accompanied by rising marginal costs. He noted that the nation will need to make increasingly larger sacrifices to radically restructure its electricity market in a manner consistent with world best practices.

    While watchers expect the private operators to play a significant role in shaping the electric power industry, the concerns are that the government needs to upgrade and expand high-voltage transmission facilities, protect and enhance environmental quality and improve energy efficiency. The cumulative effect of these initiatives has the potential to impact power system reliability as well as electricity market dynamics. According to him, a modernized transmission system will make better use of statewide generating resources and enhance access to power resources.

    Adenikinju said that the development of new demand response resources and addition of generation and expansion of transmission will contribute to a more reliable power system.

    For watchers, the issues facing the electric system are complex, dynamic, and frequently inter-related. Nonetheless, the production of electricity from natural gas has grown dramatically. Power plants fueled by natural gas are vital elements of the electric system and their roles are expected to grow.

    On a cautionary note, as dependence on natural gas for electric generation increases, the impact of natural gas supply on electric system reliability and power costs will also grow. For instance, disruptions in natural gas supply can affect the ability of gas-fueled generation to provide power, which could impact electric system reliability. While experts foresee a need for new resources to replace retiring units, project financing remains a hurdle for generation projects. The outlook for return on investment is also unclear.

    Adenikinju urged the government and stakeholders to commit resources to help ensure a bright energy future for the nation.

     

    Congestion challenges

    Operators need to address transmission congestion, including new or upgraded transmission, additional generation, or demand-side measures. Transmission congestion results from physical limits on how much power high-voltage lines can reliably carry.

    Solutions to congestion may include building or upgrading existing transmission, building additional power supply resources in close proximity to an area needing supplies, or reducing the demand for power in the areas downstream from congested lines.

     

    Distribution challenges

    While interconnected, the power grids serving various regions of the country don’t reflect differences in geography, climate, reliability requirements, and available power resources. Where the various regions interface, the differences create seams in the overall fabric of the grid that can lead to market inefficiencies and inhibit efficient coordination of grid operations.

     

    Customers

    They need to allow electricity consumers, suppliers, and service providers to participate in all types of price-based demand response programmes. What Customers want is value-added energy services such as consumption information, consumption controls (load shifting), demand response, higher reliability, and energy bundles).

    The Director-General the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Ms. Bolanle Onagoruwa, once noted that the objectives of the privatization of the power distribution companies include improving efficiency by increasing collections, reducing technical/non-technical losses, reducing costs as well as increasing access to electricity. Others include improving infrastructure through private sector investment, ensuring fair tariffs to all end-users, increasing commercial viability of the power sector, and improving customer service.

     

    Renewable energy sources

    Overall, restructuring in the electric power industry will stimulate demand for natural gas and that rising demand will lead to higher wellhead prices as the discovery process progresses from larger and more profitable fields to smaller, less economical ones. The restructuring will have a significant impact on crude oil production because petroleum-based generation is a big share of overall electricity generation. Unless required by the Federal Government, the restructured electricity market is not projected to stimulate renewable energy technologies. If policies require increased use of renewable energy, average electricity prices will increase slightly. Biomass, wind, and geothermal would be the most likely technology choices for expanded use of renewable energy.