Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State has called for collaboration in the power sector to generate enough capacity to increase electricity supply in the country.
•Signs N294.5b 2017 budget into law
Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State has called for collaboration in the power sector to generate enough capacity to increase electricity supply in the country.
The governor made the appeal on Monday when he commissioned a gas turbine at the Transcorp Power Plant at Ughelli. He disclosed that the plant would contribute 115 megawatts to the national grid and promised to consolidate on the existing peace in the state to boost investors’ confidence.
Okowa commended the Chairman of Transcorp, Tony Elumelu on the ability of the company to accomplish the task. The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, said the successful commissioning of the project was due to the peace enjoyed in the state.
The minister stressed that the increase in power generation was a sign that the sector’s privatisation had started to yield fruits. Elumelu explained: “Upon the successful acquisition and takeover of the Ughelli power-generating plant by Transcorp, we resolved to achieve an optimal plant recovery. This led to an assessment and subsequent replacement of the then obsolete turbine 15, which had a capacity of 100megawatts.”
He said the new gas turbine had 33 per cent simple cycle efficiency, adding that with its integration into the national grid, its capacity had increased from 160 megawatts to 620 megawatts.
Meanwhile, Okowa yesterday signed the N294.5 billion 2017 Appropriation Bill into law. The bill was presented to Okowa at the Government House by the Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Monday Igbuya, accompanied by his Deputy, Friday Osanebi, Clerk of the House, Mrs. Lyna Ochukor and other principal officers of the assembly.
The governor explained, “The budget was made up of N158 billion recurrent and N136 billion capital expenditures.” He said the recurrent expenditure was high due to heavy wage bill, adding that the state would also spend N31 billion in debt servicing.
The governor commended the assembly for the speedy passage of the bill and promised to provide even development in the upland, as well as in the riverine areas, they stated.
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