Worried by the perennial shortage of gas to power generating plants in the country, with its resultant effect on Nigerians, especially, their businesses, the Federal Government has set up an Inter-Ministerial Committee to address the challenges.
The Committee is to brainstorm ways to achieve a steady and sustainable gas supply to the Gas Power Generating Plants to meet both the domestic and industrial needs of Nigerians in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Ahmed Bola Tinubu’s administration.
The Deputy Director of Press and Public Relations, Chris Ugwuegbulam in a statement on Thursday said, the Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, and the Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu formed the Committee at the end of the meeting between the two Ministries in the Office of the Honourable Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Gas) Rt. Hon. Ekperikpe Ekpo.
At the meeting, Ekpo outlined the challenges causing the low supply of gas to the Thermal Power Plants to include; Decade of Gas legacy debts; vandalization of gas resources infrastructures in the Niger Delta Region; domestic pricing of gas in dollars, etc and he expressed his willingness to work harmoniously with any individual, organisation, and Agency to solve the challenges.
The Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu in his remarks stated the need for the two Ministries to work collaboratively and solve the problem of low gas supply to the Thermal Power Plants in order to achieve an uninterrupted power supply in the country, stressing that, “there is absolutely nothing can be done in Nigeria without stable power.”
Members of the committee were drawn from the Ministries of Petroleum Resources and Power, Regulatory Agencies, Operators, and Critical Stakeholders in the Gas and Power Sectors.
The meeting was witnessed by some Directors in the Ministries of Petroleum Resources and Power.
Recall that the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) recently attributed the erratic power supply being experienced across the country to shortage of gas to thermal generating plants.
TCN General Manager, Public Affairs, Ndidi Mbah who made the clarification in a statement said, the gas constraints to the thermal generating companies, have impacted the quantum of bulk power available on the transmission grid for onward transmission to the distribution load centers nationwide.
