BREAKING NEWS, Energy Briefs
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THE power sector local content regulation will become law in the first quarter of this year. Sam Amadi, chairman, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, disclosed this while making a presentation at a session at Chatham House, London, chaired by Peter Callaghan of Commonwealth Business Council.
Amadi pointed out that the power sector local content law still in the early stage of the transition was intended to avoid the mistakes made in the oil and gas sector which was still dominated by expatriates 50 years after. “We have a local content regulation that by February should become law, we have come up with a local content regulation that provides a framework for every company to begin to localise both technology, and services. For example a meter provider should within the next five years set up a factory in Nigeria. This is to ensure that the spill off from electricity reform goes to enhance the economy of the nation,” he said.
Amadi also told the gathering that power supply would hit 7,000mw by the end of this year as increased capacities were expected from the NIPPs coming on stream, while generation benchmark was set at 20,000mw by 2017.
Concerns over PIB
THE African Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development has called for a speedy passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, currently before the National Assembly. According to the group, the discretionary powers of the president as contained in section 190, sub-section 3 of the PIB should be removed. It argued that the powers of the president as contained in the current PIB was capable of undermining the whole essence of the bill.
During the fourth media roundtable on transparency and accountability in the oil and gas sector in Nigeria, Monday Osasah, programme coordinator of the group, said it was worrisome that the bill had not been passed after being presented to the National Assembly for a very long time.
“As good as the intention of the PIB is, the passage has not seen the light of day due to politics and personal intrigues and this portends a great danger to the future of the oil and gas sector, which is the epicentre of the Nigerian economy. The PIB is perceived as the most authentic legislation that would overhaul the petroleum industry and deal with all the weaknesses in the existing laws as they overtime have not been able to address issues of opacity that have been hovering around the sector for the past years,” he said.
Osasah said the PIB was meant to harmonise the 16 existing laws that would regulate the oil and gas sector. According to him, the PIB would rewrite Nigeria’s over five decades of relationship with the international oil companies operating in the country and would deal with the issue of gas flaring in the sector.
Power Rationing Hits Lagos Suburb
THE Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company, IKEDC, has begun power rationing at Agege, Oko-Oba, Abesan, Ipaja, Abule Odu and environs, all in Lagos suburb, after one of its major transformers developed a fault. The management of the DISCO, in a statement on Wednesday, January 22, said the current power rationing being experienced in the affected areas was due to a major fault on the 60MVA transformer at the Alimoso transmission substation.
It, therefore, apologised to its numerous customers in the affected locations, promising that efforts were being made to repair the transformer. Pekun Adeyanju, assistant general manager, public affairs, IKEDC, said a team of engineers and technicians of the Nigerian Transmission Company were already working on the faulty transformer. “A team of engineers and technicians at the transmission sector are working round the clock to ensure that the transformer is repaired within the shortest possible time to bring back normal power supply to the areas,” he said.
Compiled by Anayo Ezugwu
— Feb. 3, 2014 @ 01:00 GMT
Tags: Commonwealth Business Council Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company Monday Osasah National Assembly NERC Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission Peter Callaghan Petroleum Industry Bill Sam Amadi Strategy and Development The African Centre for Leadership
