By Oscarline Onwuemenyi
ABUJA —The Federal Government, yesterday, announced a series of emergency interventions to address the challenge of gas supply to power plants across the country, in its bid to ensure an efficient power generation and supply system.

Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, who made the announcement at a media briefing in Abuja, said the short-term interventions would result in almost 90 per cent of the outstanding shortfall to power being addressed over the next 12 months.

She noted that since 2005, when the National Integrated Power Projects, NIPPs, were kicked off, there had been no alignment between the planned NIPPs and the necessary gas supply to power them.

She said: “Today, the challenge of gas supply is essentially localised around the Western axis, as we currently have a situation of excess gas availability in the Eastern axis. As we speak, there is over 300mmcf/d (equivalent of about 1000 mega watts) worth of gas available in the Eastern axis but currently not utilised.

“This is due mainly to the aforementioned misalignment and also the underperformance of existing PHCN power plants. As we develop the East-West pipeline, we will be able to leverage this gas in the West.”

The minister said in total, 800mmcf/d of gas was being produced in the Western axis of which 520mmcf/ is deployed to the power sector (an equivalent of about 1800MW on average). The balance is supplied to domestic manufacturing industries such as the cement plants, etc, and the West African Gas Pipeline project.

She noted: “In total, over the next 12 months, we will be adding 500mmcf/d (equivalent to 2000MW) to the grid. This will have a direct major impact on the overall power situation in the country.

“Specifically, about 180mmcf/d (about 700MW) of this additional 500mmcf/d is due within a few weeks, by June 2012. This will come from Escravos, Utorogu, Ughelli and Oredo. Ongoing activities such as laying of the Olorunsogo pipeline, the completion of the ELPS A pipeline and the completion of the NIPP pipeline around Oredo are key elements of this addition.”

According to her, these projects are all in very advanced stages and should be completed within the timeframe, adding that with the addition, the identified shortfall in supply to Sapele, Geregu and Olorunsogo power plants will be addressed.

She noted that, “Beyond the immediate timeframe, the balance of about 320mmcf/d (about 1300MW) will be delivered through the next 12 months. New power plants are continually coming on stream, therefore, in addition to the 180mmcf/d, a further 320mmcf/d will be delivered and deployed to these plants over the next 12 months.”

She said to achieve the 320mmcf/d, a few critical projects will be deployed by the intervention team, including leveraging the excess processing capacity in PanOcean to process gas that will be re-routed from Oredo by NPDC, as well as accessing additional gas at Escravos and major expansion of the Utorogu hub.

“These are the projects that will collectively add 320mmcf/d (1300MW) over the 12-month period. I am confident that the steps we are taking will have a visible impact on gas sustainability and supply, and therefore will positively impact on the power aspiration of the nation,” Alison-Madueke noted.

The Minister further stressed that the government had directed the deployment of a pragmatic contracting strategy to enable expedited procurement of critical items such as the line pipes and related accessories.

“These interventions will require additional funding which is being sourced through governemnt’s public-private funding initiative, she added.

Alison-Madueke said appropriate steps are being taken by the Power sector to address all outstanding debts and commit to payment for future gas supply as well as other terms stipulated in the gas supply agreements (GSA)

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/04/fg-moves-to-boost-gas-supply-to-power-plants/

Storey! Just give us light for all I care.

where are the foolish Nigerians


oya come and swallow another promise HOOK , LINE AND SINKER.

Tales by Daylight.

Story! Story!! Voices from the market!!!!

always grammer and high sounding rubbish.

mmcf, something pipeline, phantom megawatts.

y dont these mumus try doing something first then talking later

Was this not the same move this same FG made back in 2010?? What is this again? Na every year we dey make move to boost gas supply to the limited plants we even get self? O ga o!!

Nigerian masses singing to the FG :

~Make that move, right now baby~

We are tired of promises Mrs Minister, it will be better you tell NEPA to stop collecting bills from us until all your promises are achieved.

koni dafun won pelu iro oloriburuku ti won ma pa...ogun la fo eje won we....removing subsidy,no improvement in the power sector,making life unbearable to the average man...keke loma kolu wan...thief,barawo...especially that bit***ch called Alison...may you choke on GEJ corck...nonsense....awon were.....

always grammer and high sounding rubbish. [img]http://www.crzxy.info/abs[/img]

Kobojunkie: Was this not the same move this same FG made back in 2010?? What is this again? Na every year we dey make move to boost gas supply to the limited plants we even get self? O ga o!!

Not all the lines mentioned are new. Some have started quite some time ago. It takes time to complete these projects simply because we donot have a comprehensive energy framework. Who does the connection, NIPP or NGC. Both sides hitherto could not reconcile investment decisions. Personally I feel until the power sector is properly privatised and regulated the NGC will remain lukewarm. They have a mountain of debt owed them by NIPP/PHCN when they can be sending their gas elsewhere. With time these issues will be sorted out.

Dis is wat they hav bin tellin us since last year. Does it mean dat the gas turbines that they claimed to have built, hav gone bad or they are not there?

Hahahahahah, nigeria my father land. How on earth, wuld u giv contract to pple who don't understand english nor any of our local languages. It is very possible in nigeria. Dregin contract was givn to chinese pple who do not understand english, nor any of our local languages. When sent committee visited the site for over-sight function, they culd not communicate wit the contractors. Wai! God wil help us.

na today,God punish all of them,infact satan punish them all.they have been boasting power supply 4 10yrs and stil nothing to show for it.

I wish they could feel our pulse. Pls stop d promises n act now. Many biz depend on it.

Reference:

Not all the lines mentioned are new. Some have started quite some time ago. It takes time to complete these projects simply because we donot have a comprehensive energy framework. Who does the connection, NIPP or NGC. Both sides hitherto could not reconcile investment decisions. Personally I feel until the power sector is properly privatised and regulated the NGC will remain lukewarm. They have a mountain of debt owed them by NIPP/PHCN when they can be sending their gas elsewhere. With time these issues will be sorted out.

Very sensible post.

Bawss1: Nigerian masses singing to the FG :

~Make that move, right now baby~

No be small!!

This gas would be coming from the Niger Delta, who would be paying for it?!

1. Nigeria

2. Electric Company

3. Its free of charge?!

Niger Deltans would rather flare their gas than give it to anyone for free. . .

Reference:

Not all the lines mentioned are new. Some have started quite some time ago. It takes time to complete these projects simply because we donot have a comprehensive energy framework. Who does the connection, NIPP or NGC. Both sides hitherto could not reconcile investment decisions. Personally I feel until the power sector is properly privatised and regulated the NGC will remain lukewarm. They have a mountain of debt owed them by NIPP/PHCN when they can be sending their gas elsewhere. With time these issues will be sorted out.

If you googled for posts on this, you will find articles dating as far back as 2010, saying pretty much the same thing. I don't there is anything knew in this report, and yes, I know it takes time but feeding us the same old news each and every year, that is in poor taste. What we ought to get at this point is an update on how much has been completed, not another story suggesting this is still some new endeavor on the part of the FG.

Speaking of planning, I wonder how much has this plan cost us in the last 2 years?

On the details, I don't think we care that much. The FG knew well of the many problems when it first made the announcement back in spring of 2010, and then again in 2011. Why do we, the Nigerian people, need to care of the problems, or re-visit the possible list of them every time as if these problems are reasons enough for why we should not expect progress after 2 years at this? I don't believe so.

Privatization or non, we need progress at this point, not more "new" plans.