NDPHC explains shut down of its power plants along western axis
2 min read
By Benjamin Oloche
The management of the Niger Delta Power Holding Company, NDHPC, said it was forced to shut down its plants along the Western axis due to the maintenance of Nigeria Gas Infrastructure Company, NGIC, facilities.
The company explained that it acted on the instructions from NGIC to shut down the plants
The media adviser of NDPHC, Mr Sanya Adejokun, who stated this via a statement issued in Abuja, said that in the morning of August 6, 2023, NDPHC received immediate
instructions from the Nigeria Gas Infrastructure Company (NGIC) to initiate a shutdown.
According to Adejokun, the directive was prompted by ongoing maintenance work being conducted at NGIC’s gas facilities.
He said, “Regrettably, this maintenance work led to a significant reduction
in the available gas quantity, reaching as low as 13MMscf.
“This quantity proved insufficient to adequately fuel our gas turbine, which boasts a capacity of 125MW Adding to these unforeseen circumstances, the Gas Aggregation Company of Nigeria (GACN) also communicated NDPHC about 10.30 am same day.
“Their notification outlined the challenges faced in gas supply along the western axis pipeline. This pipeline is vital as it supplies gas to five of our power plants. These supply difficulties arose due to the ongoing maintenance undertaken by Seplat our esteemed gas supplier.
“The culmination of these events critically impacted on gas pressure, ultimately necessitating the shutdown of all our power plants” he said
Adejokun, while acknowledging the complexity of the challenges, noted that the company is working very hard to restore regular supply of electricity.
He stressed further that, “We acknowledge the complex and interconnected nature of these challenges and we are actively engaged with our partners to expedite the resolution of these issues and restore regular operations.
“Nevertheless, on August 7, 2023, NDPHC’s Omotosho Power Plant achieved synchronization with the grid. These actions were undertaken following explicit instructions and approvals received from the National Control Centre (NCC) and Nigerian Gas Company (NGC), respectively.
“A thorough review of the NCC’s daily load allocation table for August 8, 2023 underscores NDPHC’s unwavering commitment to meeting its contractual obligations.
“Specifically, we have consistently fulfilled our responsibilities in supplying some distribution companies with the stipulated electricity capacities as delineated in the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).
“It is essential to highlight that in addition to the bilateral power purchase agreements established with NDPHC, both Eko DisCo and Aba Power are recipients of routine allocations directly from the national grid.”
