Lagos State Government to add two more IPPs this year

Lagos state government has said that it is adding two more Independent Power Projects (IPPs) in addition to the five already in existence to power markets, schools and other critical infrastructure in the state through the state government’s “Light up Lagos” project.

Akinwunmi Ambode governor of Lagos state, through his commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources, Olawale Oluwo, communicated this to journalists, last week at a press briefing, in Ikeja.

“The state is building more IPPs that will provide power to the people working with other stakeholders”

Responding to concerns about impact of the IPPs on power delivery in the state, Oluwo said, “Let me make a clarification, the IPP’s are not owned by the Lagos state government. They are owned by the private sector and we contracted it with them on a Build-Operate and Transfer Basis. That is you go look for the money, build the plant, we will guarantee you that we will build everything that the plant will be producing, subject to agreement and we will be paying you for the next 10 years. After ten years, it becomes the property of the Lagos State government”.

Giving details about the partnership with stakeholders, Oluwo stated that “Lagos State government is not the one to generate, we are not distributing and we are not the ones to supply the gas that will power the generation companies.

“What it means is that the other stakeholders who have bought the power assets following the privatization programme of the Federal government are the ones that will make this happen. But the Lagos State having been elected by the people of Lagos State, has a responsibility to ensure that while the private sector people are setting out to implement their roll out plans the government must be with them as partners to ensure that if there are bottle necks, or we have bureaucracy that is disturbing them we can help them to demolish it – that is what this partnership is about.”

There are currently five Independent Power Plants (IPPs) Akute (12.55Mw), Lagos Island (10Mw), Alausa (10.4Mw), Mainland (8.8Mw) and Lekki Peninsula (6Mw).

“Light up Lagos,” is a turnkey policy of Lagos State government to deliver constant, safe and reliable energy to the metropolis by powering homes, businesses and public facilities to improve socio-economic development of the state.

Through this initiative major roads in Lagos from Berger to Lekki have been powered with street lights using renewable energy or in the case of Third Mainland Bridge, through six diesel powered generators.

He clarified that the ‘Light up Lagos’ project is not only about powering street lights. “Street lightening is just a small component of the light up Lagos initiative.

Lagos State governor inaugurated an advisory committee made up of critical stakeholders that includes chief executives and directors of the two power distribution companies in Lagos, Eko and Ikeja,  power generating companies, Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), power plants,  Attorney general of the State and private investors on December 9, 2015.

ISAAC ANYAOGU