Femi Otedola Moves to Establish the First Power Transmission Project in Collaboration With Lagos State Government and AfDB

Mr Femi Otedola, the chairman of Geregu Power Plc, announced plans to set up a power transmission project in collaboration with the Lagos state government.

He made the announcement on his social media handle during a meeting with Lagos State Governor Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu and African Development Bank Group President Dr Akinwunmi Adesina in Lagos.

If the project is approved and successful, it will be the first of this kind in Nigeria, because private persons have previously been prohibited from transmitting power in the nation.

The decision of Mr Femi Otedola follows President Bola Tinubu's recently approved Nigeria Electricity Act 2023, which provides state governments and private persons the right to transfer power in regions covered by the national grid. The law allows states, businesses, and people to create, transfer, and distribute energy in the country.

The bill also demonopolized electricity control by transferring these responsibilities to state governments whenever a regulatory body is established.

Further Reports on Lagos State’s Electricity Plans

The Lagos state government intends to utilize the new Electricity Act to develop a sustainable electricity market with a solid commercial framework.

Power transmission has been a concern in Nigeria, with transmission grid failures almost all the time. In 2022, The national grid failed over ten times which caused a nationwide blackout. Despite having a generating capacity of 22000 megawatts, Nigeria can only transport roughly 4000 to 6000 megawatts of power.

In Nigeria, Lagos state has the largest economy and is considered the sixth largest in Africa. In 2022, its GDP was $29 billion. In 2020, the state's electricity demand was 10,000 megawatts, while the supply was only 1900 megawatts.