The Senate has mandated its Committee on Power to investigate the activities of power generating and distribution companies with the aim of unravelling the causes of unsteady power supply in Nigeria.
The resolution of the Senate followed the consideration of a motion moved by Senator Chukwuka Utazi, who lamented that power generating or installed capacity of Nigeria in relation to its population and Gross Domestic Product cannot ensure that Nigeria competes favourably in terms of development with other nations.
The lawmaker while expressing optimism that Nigeria can set a realisable target of generating a capacity of 100,000 megawatts in the next 10 years, said this target can be achieved through a mix of energy sources such as natural gas, hydro, coal, wind and renewable energy.
He added that beyond generation and transmission, Distribution Companies lack the financial and technical capacities required, thereby resulting in their inability to pay for power which Generation Companies (GenCos) deliver to the grid.
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The Senate urged the Federal Government to upgrade the transmission infrastructure of Nigeria’s power grid for more efficient transmission of power.
While advocating for 100,000 megawatts installed capacity to match the size of Nigeria’s economy and population, the upper chamber urged the Federal Government to break-up the country’s power distribution companies into smaller, more manageable distribution companies for optimal performance.