A’Ibom, NNPC, Dangote others plan power plant

The Akwa Ibom State Governor, Udom Emmanuel, who disclosed this, while fielding questions from journalists shortly after a meeting in his office with the investors, said the power plant project would be operated under Public-Private Partnership (PPA) agreement.

The project is to be jointly established by the Akwa Ibom State Government, in conjunction with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) joint venture, Dangote Group, BlackRhino, African Development Bank, International Finance Consortium (IFC) with the Islamic Development Bank as financiers of the project.

According to the governor, the new electricity project, when completed would attract more investors and create employment, as well as boost the economy of the state and country.

He said that if with about four hundred million cubic scores of gas is produced; the industrialisation drive of his administration should witness a major leap and assured of a congenial and safe environment for the investment.

On his part, the Chief Executive Officer and founder of BlackRhino, Brian Herlihy, explained that the Qua Iboe Power Plant Project has a portfolio of more than one billion dollars, in partnership with BlackRhino, Dangote Group and NNPC.

The company, he said, would build a 570 Megawatts Gas fire Power Plant using a Combined Circle Technology with General Electric equipment and world-class expertise, which would utilise onshore and offshore gas for its operations to enhance the growth of other industries in the value chain.

Herlihy further disclosed that the power plant project would employ more than 12,000 workers at the construction level and three hundred workers during operations.

This, he explained, would have a replicate effect on the indirect job market and expressed appreciation to the state governor for receiving them, assuring that the company would be alive to it corporate social responsibilities and sued for more co-operation from both the government and people of the state.

Also, the Special Assistant to the Governor on Power, Meyene Etukudo, said Akwa Ibom was richly blessed with enormous economic potential and that its development is gradually unfolding.

Etukudo, who identified power as a major element in industrial development, said that about 567 mega watts of electricity would be added to the national grid to make up to about twenty per cent of the total grid in the country.

He expressed appreciation to the state governor for his vision to build power sub-stations that would enhance effective energy distribution for the state and used the occasion to condemn the incessant vandalism on electrical installations.