Newsfront Online …Telling the Public as it is
A 3 x 150MVA power transmission substation designed to evacuate power from Ibom power plant, Aluminium Smelter Company of Nigeria (ALSCON) and the proposed QIPP power plant have been abandoned by the National Integrated Power Projects (NIPP) since 2008.
This was disclosed by the Managing Director of Ibom Power Company Limited and Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Power, Engr. Meyen Etukudo during a courtesy visit by the Managing Director of Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Sule Ahmed Abdulaziz and TCN’s top Management to Ibom power plant in Ikot Abasi.
Engr. Etukudo decried the unjust treatment meted out to Akwa Ibom State in the area of power transmission projects and called on the TCN Management for urgent intervention. He said a 3 x 150MVA transmission substation which can take about 360megawatts of power with a control room for ALSCON to receive power from Ibom power has been left uncompleted to date even though the transformer arrived in April 2008. “The transmission line from Ikot Abasi to Ikot Ekpene, which is about 80km, has not been completed till today, they have not even finished the erection of the transmission tower”.
Engr. Etukudo, who was a former Assistant General Manager (AGM) Lines at TCN before joining Akwa Ibom State Government, drew the attention of the TCN delegation to other transmission lines that were awarded within the same period which have since been completed.
He said, “The 161km transmission line from Ikot Ekpene to Ugwuaji in Enugu state was completed over 4 years ago even though it is twice the distance of the transmission line from Ikot Abasi to Ikot Ekpene”.The transmission line from Ugwuaji in Enugu state to Makurdi in Benue state, which is about 210km, has been completed. The line from Makurdi to Jos, about 277km, was completed over 7 years ago. The only line that has remained uncompleted is the transmission line from Ikot Abasi to Ikot Ekpene”.
The MD pointed out that if the transmission line is not completed, it will pose power evacuation challenges for the Ibom power plant, the proposed 575megawatts QIPP power plant and the 500megawatts Phase 2 of the Ibom power plant because there will be no evacuation route. Engr. Etukudo also drew the attention of the TCN delegation to the proposed 2 x 60MVA substation to be constructed at Oron, which he said Akwa Ibom State Government has submitted its survey report to TCN and is awaiting TCN’s response. “We have surveyed and sent the survey plan to TCN for them to mark out the line route from Eket to Oron, the line routes have not been marked out by TCN for the state government to address wayleave issues and pay compensation”.
In his remark, the MD of TCN Sule Ahmed Abdulaziz, who was appointed in acting capacity in May 2020, said TCN is aware of the ongoing transmission projects in Akwa Ibom state. He expressed regret that most of the transmission projects that commenced in Akwa Ibom state over 7 years ago are still uncompleted.
Engr. Abdulaziz said TCN’s Management has held meetings with the Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE) where all these projects were discussed and the BPE has given TCN till February 2022 to complete all the projects. He said the 3 x 150MVA transmission substation that was abandoned by the NIPP contractor has been taken over by Siemens under the agreement with NIPP. He said NIPP has met with all the contractors and they have agreed to complete the projects by February 2022.
