On Monday in Abuja, President Bola Tinubu reassured Siemens Energy, the technical contractor in charge of the Presidential Power Initiative, that the government is fully committed to boosting the nation's energy supply and raising the standard of living for its people. Tinubu stated that the power industry is still essential to boosting the economy, especially in the industrial, educational, and healthcare sectors, during a meeting at the State House with a team from Siemens Energy led by Dietmar Siersdorfer, Managing Director for Middle East and Africa.
The government's drive for the production of an additional 4,000 megawatts of electricity was also highlighted in a statement released by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information & Strategy.
Attendees included Vice President Senator Kashim Shettima, Coordinating Minister of the Economy Wale Edun, Minister of Power Adebayo Adelabu, and Special Advisor on Energy Olu Verheijen. The President said that by using untapped people and material resources, the phased power project will put Nigeria among the continent's top producers of energy.
Without power, industrial expansion and economic development are impossible. The most important thing that humanity has discovered in the past millennium, in my opinion, is power. I value our collaboration on the project. We can sense that the initiative has made significant development thus far. However, it is not where we would like it to be.
"We value Siemens' and the German government's dedication and support. Your devotion and the investment you are making are in line with this nation's future. Energy is essential to our transportation, health care, and education, and it is difficult to achieve these goals without electricity. We're treating it seriously," he continued.
To increase the nation's power supply, Tinubu also oversaw the conversion of many significant transformer substations from two to three phases.
"We are all content and motivated. On the continent, we want to do this. He assured the group that the government will continue to supply the resources required for the project, saying, "We want everyone to see the glory of our economic recovery and banishment of poverty."
According to Adelabu, the minister of power, the industry has reached several significant turning points, such as decentralization and liberalization. He emphasized the creation of a National Integrated Electricity Policy, which has drawn more than $2 billion in new investments, and the signing of the Electricity Act 2023.
"The PPI has achieved significant milestones throughout its implementation phases since the signing of the Accelerated Agreement at COP28 in Dubai in December 2023, an event you personally attended alongside German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
"We have made major infrastructure improvements and capacity increases under the Pilot Phase (Phase Zero), which are already having an impact on grid stability and dependability across the country. "Siemens Energy has successfully delivered and commissioned three units of 75/100MVA transformers, seven units of 60/66MVA transformers, and ten units of 132/33kV mobile substations across key load centers, adding 984MW of transmission capacity to the grid," he said.
Adelabu told the President that the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction contract for Phase One, Batch One, which covers five important substations in Abeokuta, Offa, Ayede-Ibadan, Sokoto, and Onitsha, was authorized by the Federal Executive Council in December 2024.
"I am happy to announce that plans have been finalized for the mobilization of civil works at all five locations, that the necessary equipment is being manufactured concurrently, and that two of the five substations are expected to be finished by the end of 2026.
"We are also preparing Phase One-Batch Two, which includes six Brownfield and ten Greenfield substations with a cumulative impact of 4,104MW, as we consolidate gains from the Pilot Phase and Phase One-First Batch," Adelabu continued.
According to Wale Edun, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, the completion of the PPI will improve Nigeria's economic environment, generate jobs for young people, and lessen poverty.
Two of the five Batch One substations are anticipated to be finished by December 2026, according to Siersdorfer, the head of the Siemens delegation. To develop local electrical engineering expertise, generate employment, and transfer technology, he said, a training center is being built. "The PPI is a platform for long-term development and prosperity, not just a project," he declared.
He said that thousands of jobs in local areas will be made possible by services, lodging, and transportation, and that Nigerian experts would be actively involved at the five project locations.
President Tinubu was reassured by German Ambassador Johannes Lehne that the German government will continue to cooperate and assist him.