Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Power, Dr Godknows Igali, has revealed that power generation in the country had dropped to about 2,800MW due to vandalism of gas pipelines.
Igali spoke on Thursday at a meeting with the Commandant General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Dr Ade Abolurin, and relevant stakeholders charged with the protection of power infrastructure.
He explained that the power generation had dropped from a recent peak of 4,500MW on April 3 to 2,800MW presently as a result of recent vandalism along the Escravos pipeline route.
“As at April 3, which is the nearest reference point for us, we were able to generate about 4,500MW on the grid, but as at this morning we had gone down to about 2,800MW.
“So you can see how much power we have lost as a result of vandalism, that is why power supply has become very bad all over the country because of these strange Nigerians that continue to deliberately blow up our gas pipelines,’’ Igali said.
The permanent secretary decried the activities of the vandals and described their action as national economic sabotage.
Igali called on all stakeholders to join the Federal Government and security agencies to put a halt to their nefarious activities.
He said that the ministry of power was working more closely with the security agencies, especially the NSCDC in a bid to adequately protect the power infrastructure across the country.
Igali however assured that all hands were on deck to repair the pipelines and boost power generation and distribution across the country.
Earlier, Abolurin, who strongly condemned the activities of the vandals, said that his men were working day and night to curtail the menace of pipeline vandalism in the country.
He said that the NSCDC had acquired more vehicles, boats and gadgets to aid its operations, especially in the Niger Delta region.
Abolurin said that in 2015, about 50 culprits had been convicted by the law courts while several others had been arrested and awaiting prosecution.
He said that the NSCDC would not relent in his effort to ensure adequate security and protection of critical power infrastructure across the country in line with its mandate.
The NSCDC chief also appealed to the private investors operating the power infrastructure to make their own provisions for security to compliment government’s effort
