N105b Debt Cripples NDPHC

• N105b Debt Cripples NDPHC

The Managing Director, Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC), Chiedu Ugbo yesterday lamented that the over N105 billion debt being owed the firm is affecting its operation.

He said other challenges bedeviling the firm, include low pace of work, vandalism of projects and the failure of the distribution companies (DisCos) to provide Distribution Substation Operators (DSOs).

“Like every other organisation, we in NDPHC are experiencing the pains of liquidity challenges in the sector with market debt profile owed our company at over N105billion as at last invoice. Others challenges include slow pace of work by some contractors resulting in re-assigment of some projects, security situation in some parts of the country, vandalism of completed projects and lines, failure of DisCos to provide DSOs to man completed substations as well as their failure to take some completed injection substation,” he said.

He lamented the reluctance of DisCos to service customers from Completely Self Protected (CSP) transformers leading to failure to utilise already handed-over high voltage distribution system.

Ugbo who spoke during the workshop of the Power Sector Communications Team in Abuja, announced that the sector would in the second week of November commence the evacuation of 2,000 megawatts (Mw) of electricity from the Ikot-Ekpene Switching Station, adding that this will allow evacuation of over 2,000Mw of electricity from Calabar, Alaoji, Afam power stations in the Eastern plank.

In terms of transmission, he said the NDPHC has 120 projects that include, “the construction of 1,635 Km of 330kV Double Circuit lines, 720Km of 132v Double Circuit lines, 10no.new 330kV substations, 7no,new 132kV substations, 6,150MVA of 330/132kV transformer capacity, 2,800 of 132/33kV transformers capvcity and expansion of 36 TCN 330kV and 132kV substations across the country.”

He noted that in distribution projects, NDPHC has added 1,712 Km of 33kV lines, 4,540Km of 11kV lines, 24,996 completely self-protected (CSP) distribution transformers, 3,970MVA injection substations capacity and 1,212MVA CSP Transformers(distribution) capacity in the network.