FG’s policy initiatives in power sector attracts foreign direct investment
The Federal Government’s policy initiatives in the power sector continue to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) into that sector, raising hope of improved power supply for consumers.
Recently, the government took a decision that power consumers in Nigeria should not be slaves to a less-than-desirable regulatory environment. Following up on this, Babatunde Fashola, the Minister for Power, Works and Housing, therefore, launched some initiatives to ensure significant increase in power generation and distribution to the point of use.
One of the most recent of such initiatives is the waiving of licensing requirements for power generation project of 1 megawatt or less. This is a commendable action by the minister considering a raft of self-sufficient communities and estates in major urban conurbations such as Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt which are in need of reliable power.
Again, this policy initiative is encouraging and its effect is not taking too long to see, especially with the coming of Bussbar Energy, a power company established by a team of American investors led by Bernie Conyers, into the country’s power sector.
It should be noted that Bussbar Energy is not just a foreign company sitting abroad and merely looking for contract in Nigeria. The company is actually investing in the power sector in order to be a significant producer of sustainable and environmentally friendly power.
Bussbar, according to Conyers, can provide bespoke solutions on site, pointing out that they are not the regular power generating or distribution companies. “We can make power generation and conservation more effective; we can generate, conserve and distribute up to one megawatt per site. So, there is no limit in theory”, said Conyers who is Bussbar’s managing director.
He also stated that, in the next 12 months, “Bussbar has prospect for generating, conserving and supplying a minimum of 50 megamatts of electricity to different projects on offer”.
The current dismal power supply and distribution situation in the country are a confirmation that there are fundamental distortions, from the onset, in the privatisation exercise of the federal government, starting with the Olusegun Obasanjo presidency which spanned 1999 to 2007.
But with the coming of Bussbar Energy, hope is in the offing, not just for homes, but also for industrial concerns and new urban communities like Gracefield Island— a new island project in Lekki, Lagos which is being developed on land reclaimed from the Lagos Lagoon.
Beyond power supply, Bussbar is also intent on empowering Nigerian youths by way of training. “Our focus is also in training young Nigerians without any pre-condition to bond them to Bussbar”, Conyers disclosed, adding that a very significant aspect of this power generation initiative is the introduction of the fly-wheel technology.
This is an innovative approach to power conservation, storage and supply that is very friendly to the environment which aligns with the concept of sustainability that underlies Gracefield development.
Conyers believes that without the policy initiative of the Federal Government, this investment would not have been possible and, interestingly, the fly-wheel technology for power is already committed to Gracefield Island—an island city where technology plays a significant role in its concept and implementation.
“The first attraction of Bussbar’s offering is that it complements the sustainability approach of our company and, crucially, it conforms to federal government’s policy and removes the need to apply for captive power licence”, Ozo Nwafor of Gracefield Island stated.