- The Siemens power deal was to increase Nigeria’s transmission capacity from 5,000 to 25,000MW.
- Part of the agreement requiring the importation of mobile stations and transformers has been fulfilled and will raise the capacity of TCN by 1,300MW.
Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, said the federal government will review the Siemens power deal with Nigeria. The deal targets the incremental rise in supply from the current 4,000MW to 25,000MW by 2025. Speaking at ARISE News, Adelabu argued that the prevailing conditions when the contract was signed had changed and would require a review. However, he stated that part of the agreement, which requires the importation of mobile stations and transformers, had been fulfilled and will raise the capacity of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) by 1,300MW.
Adelabu said, “We went into talks with the German government to support us technically, improve power infrastructure in Nigeria, and increase energy access to households, businesses and industries. And we agreed that it was going to be a three-phase project. Phase one was agreed to improve the country’s transmission capacity from 5,000 to 7,000MW. Phase two will take it to 11,000MW, while phase three will take it to 25,000MW for seven years.
“But then we know that the project has suffered many challenges, and number one was the COVID-19 pandemic which delayed the project. And we also had a political transition during this period. We had lots of regulatory reforms, and there have been lots and lots of activities in terms of new investments into the sector in the last five years. So, the situation is no longer the same as in 2018. So, we are doing a holistic review of the entire scope of this project and try to amend it to suit the current situation.”