Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal on Wednesday launched a 60 MVA transformer
with a promise to sustain government’s investment in infrastructure in the
power sector.
The ceremony, which took place at the Sokoto Transmission Station, was
undertaken by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and has resulted in
the increase of the capacity of the station to 140 MVA.
The project will also accommodate additional 33KV feeders which is expected
to supply power to the recently-installed injection substation in Farfaru,
on the outskirts of Sokoto town.
According to the Governor, the state government is adopting various means
to ensure adequate power supply to the people of the state.
“Let me use this opportunity to announce that the state government will
soon evacuate about 30 to 38 megawatts of electricity to the national grid
when the State Independent Power Project is fully completed. This project
has the required capacity to absorb the power to be generated from the
Sokoto IPP.
“We have adopted various measures to boost electricity supply in Sokoto
state. This include exploratory discussions with companies willing to
invest in wind and solar energy projects. We are on course to deliver on
these promises because as a nation, we are well short of our target
capacity in the power sector in the country. At this moment, no effort is
too much in finding lasting solution to the energy needs of the people,” he
added.
In his remarks, the Managing Director and CEO of TCN, Engineer Abubakar
Atiku, said having been built and put into use in 1976, the company decided
in 2012 to overhaul the tired 30 MVA equipment to the present 60 MVA
capacity engines to ameliorate the suffering of electricity consumers in
Sokoto metropolis and its environs.
“Today’s event is to witness the upgrading of the 30 MVA to 60 MVA capacity
resulting to a total capacity of 140 MVA for the transmission station.
“This translates to more power, more job opportunities, more industries,
enhanced quality of life and more development to the people of Sokoto
State. It is worthy of note that the project was executed in-house by TCN
engineers from the Shiroro Transmission Region in Birnin Kebbi who solely
installed the 60 MVA transformer, saving costs that would have been
incurred if the work was awarded on contract,” he said.