By JKNewsMedia
COMMITMENTS TO speed up power infrastructure delivery and attract fresh Chinese investment into Nigeria’s electricity value chain have emerged from high-level meetings in Beijing involving the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe.
JKNewsMedia.com reports that the engagements, held during the ongoing Nigeria-China power sector mission, focused on turning partnerships into bankable projects, financed investments and completed infrastructure that can be measured through additional megawatts, energised transmission lines and improved hours of reliable electricity supply.
At meetings with Sinomach Group and China Machinery Engineering Corporation, CMEC, major contractors involved in Nigeria’s generation and transmission programme, Tegbe pushed for firm and accelerated completion schedules for ongoing Presidential Power Initiative, PPI, projects.
He also called for a broader partnership model that would move beyond conventional engineering, procurement and construction contracts to include co-investment in power assets.
Under the proposed model, Chinese partners would provide capital, technology and technical expertise for generation, transmission, hydropower and related industrial investments.
Building on CMEC’s existing presence in Nigeria, Tegbe said the partnership should deliver faster project completion, increased wheeling capacity and blended financing structures.
The minister also visited China National Electric Engineering Corporation, CNEEC, to advance cooperation on engineering, procurement and construction for Nigeria’s transmission network.
The delegation further witnessed a factory acceptance test for high-voltage cables and related transmission materials at Hengfei Cable’s Changsha Industrial Park. The test was carried out to confirm that equipment destined for Nigerian transmission projects meets the required technical standards before shipment.
Tegbe also invited Chinese companies to invest in sectors identified as major electricity consumers and drivers of economic growth, including steel, automotive manufacturing, digital infrastructure and data centres, cold-chain logistics and sugar processing.
JKNewsMedia.com also reports that the proposed a structured Nigeria-China industrial cooperation platform to identify, assess and develop bankable projects aligned with Nigeria’s industrialisation priorities.
The proposed platform would seek to match new generation and transmission capacity with anchor industrial demand, while supporting job creation and strengthening the commercial viability of the power sector.
The engagements form part of the Ministry of Power’s strategy to use international partnerships to mobilise capital, expand infrastructure, increase system capacity and improve electricity reliability.
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