Reacting to newspaper reports which quoted the Minister of Power, Dr. Rilwan Babalola, as saying that the target could not be met, the Chief Press Secretary to the minister, Mrs. Olubunmi Badejo, told LEADERSHIP that the minister was quoted out of context over his dialogue with the Senate Committee on Power.
The minister, according to her, never said the 6,000 megawatts could not be met, adding that he was quoted out of context.
"We believe the target is achievable in spite of the huge challenges we are facing"
Dr Babalola, she stated, had during the session with the senators, said factors like the bursting of several gas pipelines by the militants in the Niger Delta were responsible for the failure.
He said going by the assurances from the Nigeria Gas Company (NGC) and Shell Petroleum that the Escravos Gas Pipeline which was blown up sometime ago will come on stream soon, the government hopes that with such development, It could add 1,000 megawatts to the existing capacity.
In the same vein, the minister, she added, listed other challenges in achieving long overdue transmission projects such as, technical capabilities of most local contractors, failure to undertake critical pre-contract award studies, inadequate funding to start up projects, failure to acquire project sites right-of-way, compensation and community issues, Ineffective project management and lack of contract management supervision.
Badejo further added during the interaction that the minister made it clear that, "We have not jettisoned meeting 6,000 mega watts. We are looking at it from two perspectives; we have to get all the plants ready to generate 6,000 mega watts and ensure that all our resources and energy go into making the transmission capable and transmit power effectively in the distribution to ensure that we have enough capacity to generate power.
"The second leg is on the fuel side. The sector has made it known to our sister sectors in the oil and gas industries on the amount of gas required. It is on this basis that the target was set last year, the 6,000 mega watts is still possible. All our efforts are towards ensuring that we deliver on our promise."
Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Power, Mr Nuhu Way, yesterday debunked insinuations that the Federal Government may not meet the much talked about 6,000 megawatts before the end of the year.
He assured that inspite of all odds, government is capable of achieving the target, pointing out that gas supply is becoming a daily obstacle.
Source: Leadership
| Posted: at | |
Toks-E
ngfineface
stmanuel6
hackynoni111
TRENDING GISTS 
Rest Well! Nigerian Singer, Flavour Loses Father To The Cold Hand Of Death
I Can’t Reconcile With Those That Offended Me – Gov. Obaseki Spits Fire Ahead Edo Guber
History Made As Nigeria Striker, Lookman Fires Atalanta To First Ever Europa League Glory
Nigerian President, Tinubu Jets Out To Chad For Inauguration Of President Deby
Boy Jailed For 60Yrs After Setting Fire To Wrong Home Over Stolen iPhone, Killing 5 Family Members
VID: Grandma Gets Emotional As She Bids Farewell To Grandchild After 2 months Of ‘Omugwo’ In US