The Chief Technical Officer, Kano Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO), Mr David Olu Omoloye, has advised the Federal Government to completely privatise the power sector so as to get the best from it.
Speaking during an inaugural and investiture ceremony the Chairman, Nigerian Institution of Power Engineers (NIPE), Kano State Chapter, organised for him and other executives of the association in Kano yesterday. he said privatisation, as well as injection of the right tariff structure that protects the poor and encourage industrial activities, have the potential to encourage the socio-economic development of the country. The Nation has reported.
Omoloye said a right energy mixture was also required to fully optimise all available power resources, with special emphasis on renewable energy development balanced with non-renewable.
While, acknowledging the giant effort made by the country in deregulating the power sector, he said lamented the increasing gap between power demand and supply in the country.
“Power is the heart beat of a nation. The social economic problem in Nigeria has it root cause in the under-development of the power industry. In the community of nations, Nigeria seems to have been left behind on the power industry development.
“The ever-increasing gap between demand and supply has been a great challenge to Nigeria development. With increasing population of Nigeria not balanced with power demand, the urgent need to close the gap cannot be over-emphasized,” Omoloye stated.
He added that since power development was highly capital intensive, the investment required to raise the bar of the industry to the comfort zone cannot be singlehandedly handled by the government.
“The solution lies in the total privatisation of the power industry to allow capital inflow couple with right tariff structure that protects the poor and encourage industrial development also, a right energy mix is required” he stated.
Omoloye said NIPE under his leadership would be teaming up with other stakeholders to lift the state, and Nigeria at large to a position of excellence in power delivery.
