Issues in the Power Sector will not abate until the Power Value Chain including Gas are addressed.
Former Chairman of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, Dr Sam Amadi, disclosed this while speaking to TVC News Business Nigeria with Tolulope Ogunjobi.
Mr Amadi said the Power sector needs to be properly situated to ensure that it is commoditised in a way to ensure investment.
He said Gas availability in Nigeria despite being a gas country is very poor due to a variety of reasons like ability to make the necessary funds available and provide the necessary facilities and infrastructure to ensure Gas gets to the gas companies and gets to Power companies for transmission.
He said the Gas needs to be properly commoditised in a way that will ensure availability of gas across the Value Chain.
He disclosed that the nation has enough Gas to generate all the Electricity it needs but that the Country does not possess enough liquidity to put this to operation until the right thing is done.
He called for another look to be taken at the Electricity Sector reforms that led to the privatisation of the Sector saying that the fundamentals for the Sector does not add up.
On the call for Cost reflective Tariff in the Power Sector, he said though it may not be completely cost reflective now but added that significant improvements have been made in getting a better Tariff structure in place in the Sector.
He described the call as one borne out of the penchant for wanting quick and easy wins in long tenured sector.
He however calls for better Leadership for the sector to mitigate against the inefficiency in Government Business.
He disclosed that the First thing to do was to make short term improvement by ensuring up to 90% of generated power available to homes and Businesses across the Country.
He Described this as the first step towards enhanced power supply to all Nigerians.
He called for a new Power Sector Roadmap that will take into consideration current realities adding that no Sector develops without an effective handshake between an efficient Public Service and a dynamic private Sector.
