Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon Yakubu Dogara, has
\nqueried the utilisation of N2.74 trillion spent on the power sector from
\n1999-2015, saying the sector depreciated more as more funds were pumped
\ninto it.<\/p>\n
Dogara, who was speaking at a 2-day stakeholders Interactive
\ndialogue\/workshop on the Nigerian Power Sector organised by the National
\nAssembly at Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, also noted that the challenges faced
\nby the sector calls for concerted efforts by all stakeholders to address
\nthem.<\/p>\n
“Perhaps the most important question is what happened to the N2.74
\ntrillion spent on the sector from 1999-2015? Why is it that the more we
\nspent on the power sector, the more darkness we attract?”, Dogara queried.<\/p>\n
The Speaker said it is in order to change the epileptic power situation
\nthat the National Assembly organized the workshop as a platform for power
\nsector experts and other stakeholders to do a holistic diagnosis of the
\nchallenges impeding the development of the Nigerian Electricity Supply
\nIndustry (NESI) and proffer practical solutions.<\/p>\n
“These challenges run across the entire power value chain of generation,
\ntransmission and distribution. The myriad issues are apparently
\nexacerbated by inadequate funding, poor energy mix, fuel supply issues,
\nflawed regulatory framework, commercial issues among others. There is,
\ntherefore, a need for concerted efforts by all stakeholders to address
\nthese myriad problems,” he stated.<\/p>\n
“The diagnosis includes but is not limited to a critical analysis of the
\nextant legislation and regulatory framework guiding the Nigerian Power
\nSector to determine if there is a need for amendments or enactment of new
\nlaws that will galvanize the sector to deliver the required results,” he
\nadded.<\/p>\n
Dogara also urged the participants to focus on the following questions
\nwith an aim to finding answers that will lead to the repositioning of the
\npower sector for effective delivery to Nigerians.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Why has power generation remained at less than 5000MW since the last 56
\nyears?
\n\u2022 Why have various policies by successive governments failed?
\n\u2022 Why has the transmission infrastructure remained inadequate in wheeling
\nthe available power?
\n\u2022 How can the Federal Government rapidly expand the transmission
\ninfrastructure?
\n\u2022 Why are electric meters not available to most consumers thereby leading
\nto contentious estimated billing?
\n\u2022 How can NERC establish a cost reflective tariff and reduce inefficiency
\nin support of affordable end user tariffs?
\n\u2022 Why has there not been an effective Gas Master Plan for Nigeria which
\nwould have preceded the building of the gas fired power plants?
\n\u2022 What is the solution to the perennial pipeline vandalism that disrupts
\ndelivery of gas to the gas fired power plants?
\n\u2022 What can be done to improve local and foreign investment in gas
\ngathering, processing and distribution?
\n\u2022 Why is there local and foreign investor apathy in investing in the
\nNigerian power sector?
\n\u2022 Why are the local and foreign financial institutions not funding the
\nsector?
\n\u2022 How can the FGN create and sustain a stable investment climate for
\nprivate sector participation in the power sector?
\n\u2022 How can the FGN maintain a creditworthy off-taker (NBET) of electricity?
\n\u2022 How can we maximize options like mini hydro and small solar projects to
\npower rural communities?
\n\u2022 Why are most of the companies licensed by NERC not able to start their
\nprojects?
\n\u2022 What can be done to improve the poor energy mix?
\n\u2022 Why has the FGN not embarked on Energy Conservation campaign that will
\nemphasize the use of energy saving bulbs etc.?
\n\u2022 What kind of guarantee is needed by foreign investors to facilitate
\ninvestment in the power sector?
\n\u2022 What role can the legislature play to facilitate a rapid development of
\nthe power sector?
\n\u2022 Is there a political will to tackle head on the challenges of the power
\nsector?
\n\u2022 Is there any need for amendment of extant legislations or enactment of
\nnew laws to galvanize both local and foreign investment in the Nigerian
\npower sector?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon Yakubu Dogara, has queried the utilisation of N2.74 trillion spent on the power sector from 1999-2015, saying the sector depreciated more as…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":53375,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-56011","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n