Minister calls for an end to electricity theft, assets vandalism, others

The Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, has called for an end to electricity theft, vandalism of power assets and other acts of sabotage impeding the growth of Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry, (NESI).

Chief Adelabu who made the call on Thursday while declaring open the 2023 Annual Power Correspondents Association of Nigeria, (PCAN), workshop, theme: Resolving Nigeria’s Power Crisis: The implication of the Electricity Act 2023 in Abuja, said the Nigerian media must join in the fight against this menace.

The Minister who was represented by the Director, Transmission, Mr. Nosike Emmanuel, said the act has changed the general landscape of the power sector.

The minister said “I want to put it on record that the 2023 Electricity Act is a significant part of our country’s energy roadmap as it clearly signifies the present administration’s commitment to the transformation of the power sector as clearly stated in the agenda of Mr President as contained in the Renewed Hope Agenda.

“As you are aware, the Electricity Act has liberalized electricity generation, transmission and distribution. It has also empowered States, Organisations and even individuals to generate, transmit and distribute electricity.

“Under this Act, State governments can issue licenses to private investors to operate power plants and mini grids, within the States. Private investors can also obtain licenses for generation, transmission, system operations, trading, distribution and supply”.

According to him, “For the sector to progress, we must advocate against power theft, vandalization and educate consumers against sabotage”.

Chief Adelabu highlighted that the Act has prescribed the development of the Integrated National Electricity Policy and Strategic Implementation Plan, noting that the Ministry was working with the National Council on Power, (NCP), to develop and send the implementation strategy to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) for approval.

He stated further “Also, part of the strategy in our road map is the emphasis on the bottom-up approach, unlike the top -down approach of the past. The implication, with the bottom-up approach, is that we will prioritize Metering, Distribution and Transmission infrastructure. We will focus on Customers down to distribution and transmission infrastructure in the short term, this is to ensure that a significant portion of what is generated currently gets to the end users.”

Earlier, the Chairman, Power Correspondents Association of Nigeria (PCAN), Mr. Obas Esiedesa, said the workshop, from inception, was intended to create an opportunity to build the capacity of journalists covering the power sector, as well as create an avenue for journalists to interact with industry players and regulators.

Esiedesa, stated that, “On November 1, 2013, the Federal Government handed over the distribution and most generation assets to the private sector, marking the beginning of private investment into the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry”.

He lamented that expectations raised by the entrance of private entrepreneurs into the sector have largely remained unmet.

The Chairman explained that “Ten years down the line, the time has come for the Federal Government to take a holistic review of the entire Power sector privatization. Not necessarily taking away the assets from operators, but finding solutions to the huge challenges facing the industry. It is worrying to note that with over 13,000 megawatts of installed capacity, the industry is still struggling to deliver 4,000MW of electricity on a consistent basis. That is why as a group, we welcome the new initiative by the Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, that has specifically targeted the distribution sector and the consumers”.

According to him, the transmission and distribution networks remain the biggest obstacles to efficiency and effective electricity supply in the country.