The Federal Government on Tuesday disclosed that it had issued 13 new licences for the generation of off-grid and embedded power, independent electricity distribution and trading of electricity.
The disclosure, which was contained in the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) report listed the new licencees as Daybreak Power Solutions Limited, which was issued eight licences for various off-grid power generation projects in Lagos, Abia, Borno, Kano, Oyo and Abuja; Ekiti Independent Power Project that got a licence for the development of a gas-fired 5MW embedded power project in Ekiti State and Olokiti Power Distribution Limited that was issued an Independent Electricity Distribution Network licence that would be operational in Ekiti State.
Others include Ember Power Limited which was licensed as an electricity trading company; Island Power Limited got a licence for the development of a 10MW embedded gas-fired power project in Lagos; while Energy Company of Nigeria Limited was issued an Independent Electricity Distribution Network licence that would also be operational in Lagos State.
According to NERC, the new licences were issued in the third quarter of 2023, with the cumulative quantum of electricity to be generated by the licensees totalling 40.9 megawatts.
A Section titled “Licences and Permits Issued or Renewed”, in the latest third quarter 2023 report of the regulatory commission stated that five new off-grid generation licences that would generate 8.81MW were issued during the review period, as well as one new licence for embedded generation of 5MW.
On other licences issued by it, the NERC disclosed that one new licence for Independent Electricity Distribution Network, one new licence for trading, three off-grid generation licences, one embedded generation, and one IEDN licence.
It further clarified: “For activities that do not require licenses based on the provisions of sections 65-68 of the Electricity Act 2023, but still require authorisation from the commission, such as off-grid captive power generation and mini-grid development, the commission issues permits to the operators following a review of the relevant applications.”
It would be recalled that power generation in the country has been hovering between 3,500MW and 5,000MW, which is not adequate to meet the energy needs of the over 200 million population in Africa’s biggest economy.
For instance, on Monday, the power generation as of 6am was 4,357.09MW with peak power generation the preceding day totalling 4,579.5MW, while off-peak power generation was 4,062.98MW.
In June 2023, reports by some international agencies indicated that Nigeria remained the largest number of people lacking access to electricity, as 86 million of the population were living without electricity as of 2021, according to a joint report.
However, the Federal Government and operators in the power supply space have been making efforts to increase the country’s electricity output over the years, which led to the privatisation of the successor generation and distribution companies in November 2013.
The issuance of licences for the generation of electricity by the government through NERC is another way of boosting the country’s power supply and reducing the number of persons who lack electricity.
