Chiedu Ugbo, Managing Director/CEO of the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) has solicited a partnership with Nigeria’s Ministry of Water Resources to enable the construction of small and medium hydro-power plants, particularly in the power-starved, northern region of the country.
During a visit to Nigeria’s Minister of Water Resources, H.E. Suleiman Adamu, last week, the NDPHC expressed its interest in modifying the country’s dams to install hydro-electric power generation capabilities to boost power energy supply in Nigeria. Evaluation of existing dams and the assessment of the potential for small-to-medium sized hydro plants to be incorporated into existing infrastructure is currently being appraised.
Minister Adamu explained that the country has more than 240 dams across the country, most of which contain the capacity for hydropower generation from 40 MW and below.
The NDPHC has ten power generation plants in the country, eight of which are linked to the national grid, providing approximately 4,099 MW to Nigeria. Due to poor infrastructure, the majority of these plants are unable to optimally generate energy. Ugbo indicated that the NDPHC is currently aiming to expand its renewable energy capabilities in the country.
Minister Adamu urged the NDPHC to support more renewable projects in Nigeria, particularly through the installation of solar projects in the country’s irrigation areas, which require a lot of water and electricity to operate.
This partnership comes just after the NDPHC announced the completion of the 330/132/33KV substation project in Lafia, Nasarawa State.
