Sanwo-Olu to optimise output of Lagos Independent Power Plant, invest heavily in waterways, rail transportation

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Thursday, disclosed the plan by his Government to expand the capacity of the State-owned Independent Power Plant (IPP).
Sanwo-Olu said his administration would be harnessing private investment to boost the output of the IPP in response to the growing need to sustain the “Light-Up Lagos” project of his predecessor and also to absorb more public offices in the State-owned power grid.
The Governor made this known during a facility inspection of the IPP in Alausa, which is currently being managed on behalf of the Government by Alausa Power Limited.
Sanwo-Olu was accompanied on the inspection by the Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat; Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources, Mr. Olalere Odusote and General Manager, Lagos State Electricity Board, Mr. Mukhtar Tijani.
This effort by the Sanwo-Olu administration to upscale the output of the IPP is seen as major move by the State Government to optimise the capacity of the power plant, seven years after it was built.
The Governor said: “We considered embarking on this facility inspection of the Lagos IPP to see how we will optimise the current usage of the plant early this year, given the growing demand for electricity to power public facilities around.
“Knowing the current output of the power plant is necessary for us to decide what kind of investment required to solve the operational issues and upscale the output. When the IPP was built in 2013, it boosted the capacity of Government’s offices in Alausa and help us in our Light-Up Lagos project. But, there is a need for us to expand the services for more coverage.”
Sanwo-Olu said the current output could no longer meet the demand of the State. He said the inspection tour would be followed up with a meeting with partners on the IPP initiative to discuss sustainable growth plan on the output, as more Government’s facilities are set to be integrated into the power grid.
“What we currently have now certainly cannot meet up with our requirements. We want to expand and grow the Light-Up Lagos initiative, so that we can light up strategic highways and areas, including Ikorodu Road, Ogudu, and Oworonsoki and extend the initiative to Adeniyi Jones and Oba Akran Road. We want to have the whole parts of the State lit up at night,” Sanwo-Olu said.
The Alausa IPP, built in October 2013, is one of the power plants conceived and developed by the State Government. It provides electricity to a number of public institutions in the Ikeja environ and also powers key public infrastructure, including streetlights on major highways.
Sanwo-Olu also revealed that the state government would pursue audacious development programmes in 2020.
In a New Year broadcast, the Governor unveiled his administration’s direction in policies and programmes in the year, disclosing that the Government would be prioritising investment in critical infrastructure with a new vigour.
Sanwo-Olu said the State Government was prepared to shift the burden of transportation away from roads alone, disclosing that there would be renewed focus on waterways and rail transportation in the current year. The objective, the Governor said, is to disperse traffic on the roads and give residents a new choice in mass movement across the State.
With the signing of the State’s N1.168 trillion 2020 Budget into law last Tuesday, the Governor said his administration had been statutorily emboldened to fully tap into the potential of its waterways and rail corridors by pursuing fresh investment and partnerships that would help his Government deliver an inter-modal transportation model.
Traffic management and transportation is a key pillar of the Sanwo-Olu administration’s development agenda, known as Project T.H.E.M.E.S, seeking to assuage the pains of Lagos residents occasioned by road gridlocks by reducing travel time and scaling up productivity.
The Governor said: “We are prioritising investment in infrastructure this year to shift the burden of transportation away from the roads unto the waterways as a means of moving our people around safely and efficiently. Lagos is endowed with a large body of water that has been under-exploited over the years. This is why we have set up a challenged ourselves to investment in this underutilised channel.
“Work will begin to happen on our waterways and Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA) has been saddled with this responsibility. In terms of the pace of work that is going on our Blue Line Rail project, which stretches from Okokomaiko to Marina, we expect the work to pick up and get Phase 1 of it completed for operations. Also, construction work to commence on the Red Line that will stretch from Agege to Ebute Metta, this year.”
Sanwo-Olu observed that Lagos State Public Works (LSPW) had been complementing his administration’s infrastructural renewal programme with persistent rehabilitation works on existing roads to ease flow of traffic on feeder roads. The repair work, he said, will continue across the State.
The Governor said the State had doubled its budgetary allocation to healthcare purposely to boost human capital and productivity, disclosing that the Government would be building more tertiary healthcare facilities in underserved areas across the State. This, he said, will make quality healthcare accessible and affordable for residents irrespective of income level.
He added that massive upgrading programme of Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) will commence in the first quarter of the year, revealing that a chunk of funds had been integrated in the healthcare budget for comprehensive investment in universal health insurance coverage scheme for all residents.
Sanwo-Olu said his administration’s education programme remained on course, noting that the Government had commenced training of new teachers and retraining of those already in the system. This, he said, is being complemented with massive rehabilitation of public schools across the State, pointing out that 300 schools were already being renovated in the Phase 1 of the scheme.
As the year progresses, the Governor promised that more development programmes would be unveiled across the pillars of his administration’s agenda that will directly touch the lives of residents, pleading for support and cooperation of the people. He said his Government would not retreat from taking actions that will solve challenges facing the State.
He said: “There is so much to look forward to in this New Year. I solicit for full cooperation and support as we take the first step into 2020. Together, we can achieve the ‘Greater Lagos’ of our dreams. Let us join hands and usher in the New Year with hope and confidence, with the knowledge that brighter days are ahead of us.
“In spite of whatever challenges that the New Year might bring, we will not retreat from the challenges; instead, we will convert the challenges to stepping stone to success and true greatness. I wish all Lagosians a happy and prosperous 2020”.