Power
Is Nigeria really Prepared for Nuclear Power Generation?
When the Federal Government received a 7-man delegation in July 2011 from the Russian Federation, preparatory to the signing of a draft project implementation agreement between the two nations for the proposed nuclear power plant, the question of how prepared is Nigeria to handle the challenges was left unanswered.
With the signing, Nigeria hoped to boost electricity generation capacity that will culminate in the building of the nation’s first nuclear power plant.
Minister of Science and Technology, Prof Ita Oko-Bassey Ewa said the country was in dire need of diversifying its energy generation base as part of the overall goal of making the nation’s energy sufficient, adding that “President Jonathan inaugurated Nigeria Atomic Energy Commission, NAEC, in September 2011 as the pivotal promotional agency to achieve the objective.
However, it is believed that due to the contamination of the environment and farming fields by the highly radioactive cesium, the non-import of Japanese food by Asian countries, the projected long term deadly health effects, the sharp fall in power generation, and the economy-sapping volume of money that is being spent on reducing radiation levels, is changing Japanese future energy prospects towards green energy.
Consequently, it is not only Japan that is changing views about nuclear energy; Germany will stop generating power from nuclear power plants by 2022.
While these two technologically more developed countries are phasing out nuclear energy, Nigeria, strangely, is hoping about building one.
Speaking at the opening of the Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, the South Korean capital in March 2012, President Jonathan assured the global community that Nigeria would do everything possible to ensure that adequate safety measures were deployed when the country introduced nuclear power into its energy mix.
According to the President “Nigeria remained fully committed to complying with all international legal and regulatory requirements for safety and security in the use of nuclear energy.”
Contrary to the Presidents desire to see the country secure its first nuclear power plant, Professor Hilary Iyang of University of North Carolina Charlotte USA in an interview with Sweetcrude said Nigeria is far away from achieving it.
Iyang who served as a Technical Judge in the USA Unclear Regulatory Commission in 2008 under President George Bush administration said it is one thing to have the concept and have the desire and it is another thing to have the capacity.
According to him “Nuclear power plants require a level of care that is very big because we have many hazards associated with that because it is not something that somebody gets involves in it and goes to work very late. It is not something that you can have inadequate protection from even weather elements.”
He stressed that it is the handling of many materials that comes out of nuclear energy plant that is very harmful like the radioactive substances that comes out from it.
“The radioactive substance that comes out of nuclear energy plant are products of the combustion of nuclear fuel that have the tendency to last in the environment for more than a thousand years,” he said, adding that there must be appropriate and adequate disposing methods for the waste that will emanate from generation of the energy in that regard.
“Until these systems are in place or at least strategically planed for, it is very unwise to go very deep into nuclear energy generation.
“We need to ask ourselves: Where are the scientist that will coordinate such plants? Where are the technicians? They have to be well trained, not just only well trained in theories overseas but their training should be indigenize into the Nigeria system. So you now have all this safe guard measures that are absent.”
With his wealth of experience under the Bush administration, Prof. Iyang suggested that Nigeria Right now need hybrid approaches to develop technologically.
He said much of Chines development came from adaptation of foreign technologies; hence it is impossible for Nigeria to develop on its own at a fast rate.
“The fast pace that Nigeria need is not just engaging only in development of its own technologies. So Nigeria has to adapt a mix of taking technology from one level to the next level and adapting the technology to its own use like the way some of these countries have done, China for example, South Korea did the same thing and a few others.”
Analyst is of the opinion that Nigeria should learn lesson from the worst nuclear accident in humankind history, the Ukrainian Chernobyl disaster of 1986, that was ranked seven on INES,
It was caused by human error, when engineers testing the turbines of a reactor to see if it could produce more energy whenever there is power loss caused a lethal explosion. The faulty design of the Chernobyl power plant exacerbated it.
“If you have anything that has to do with nuclear, you must have a lot of our indigenes involve in it,” Prof Hilary Iyang said.
According to reports, Nigeria’s population may face more challenging times ahead as electricity tariffs are projected to increase by over 40 percent in the near future.
This rise in tariffs could ultimately result in the elimination of all energy subsidies in the country.
Currently, the electricity sector relies on a monthly subsidy of approximately N50 billion, stemming from a shortfall in revenue.
The tariff hike, scheduled to take effect from July 1, will pose another significant test for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration and its ongoing market reforms.
The government has already taken steps to remove subsidies on Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and implemented a floating exchange rate for the national currency.
These decisions have added complexity to the price-setting process of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and its 2022 Multi-Year Tariff Order (MYTO).
Despite power sector players failing to meet the target of supplying a minimum of 5,000 megawatts, even after signing contracts with the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), the current Service Based Tariff (SBT) is based on an exchange rate of N441/$ and an inflation rate of 16.97 percent.
According to NERC’s directives in 2015, the average tariff for distribution companies (DisCos) and different categories of end-users was N25 per kilowatt, as per Order 198/2020, which came into effect on September 1, 2020.
However, in the MYTO for 2022, the average tariff increased to N60 per kilowatt across all customer categories, and in the most recent update, it stands at N64 per kilowatt.
The determination of the 2015 tariff relied on a foreign exchange rate of N198.97/$, which increased to N383.80/$ in 2020 and further to N441.78/$ in 2022. In terms of inflation, the 2015 MYTO utilized an 8.3 percent rate, which rose to 12 percent in 2020 and reached 16.97 percent in 2022.
Currently, the inflation rate stands at 22.41 percent, and experts predict it could reach 30 percent by the end of June, considering the floating of the naira and the removal of subsidies on Premium Motor Spirit (PMS).
The tariff determination process takes into account various factors, including the significant metering gap of over seven million, gas prices, losses within the system, and the actual generation capacity. These elements play a role in determining the final tariff.
As anticipated, NERC had projected that the tariff for July 2023 would eliminate subsidies and introduce increases to the previously frozen tariff bands D and E.
These adjustments were intended to raise the bands from N54.59/kilowatt to N62.16 for band D and from N48.37/kilowatt to N61.16 on average. Moreover, the average increase across all bands was expected to reach N67/kilowatt.
However, due to the ongoing floating of the naira and the significant inflationary pressures, it is now projected that the new average tariff will need to be approximately N88/kilowatt for the power sector to recover its costs.
According to energy lawyer Madaki Ameh, the continuous and frequent increases in power tariffs are akin to a form of blackmail against electricity consumers.
Amen said “Indexing the cost of electricity on the dollar is a huge mistake because most of the inputs for electricity supply are local. The DisCos are also holding Nigerians to ransom by failing to increase the supply base, thereby spreading the tariffs across a broader spectrum of consumers to reduce the unit cost of electricity.”
He insisted that as long as there remain many unmetered consumers and many others not connected to the grid at all, the few consumers on the grid would continue to be subjected to unjust tariffs, which are not reflective of the quality of service delivered.
Ameh hoped that the signing into law of the new Electricity Act would mark “the beginning of light at the end of the long tunnel of inefficient and epileptic power supply in Nigeria.”
Segun Ajibola, the former President of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) and a professor of Economics at Babcock University, highlighted that there remains a gap between the cost of electricity and the value it provides in exchange.
“Nigerians are still struggling to keep pace with the cost of energy for business and household use. If the electricity tariff goes up as envisaged, the question remains if there will be value for the quantum of electricity so paid for.
“The truth remains that if electricity supply is constant, of the right quantity and quality, the envisaged upward review in the tariff will be gladly absorbed by the populace,” he said.
Lanre Elatuyi, an Electricity Market Analyst, expressed that the recently implemented tariff rate would have significant implications. He emphasized that the devaluation of the Nigerian currency poses a major challenge for companies with dollar-denominated loans to repay.
He said “They will need more naira today to buy a dollar. They need to manage their exposure to foreign exchange risk. Even operators of hydro plants pay their concession fees in dollars. So, wholesale electricity price will be adjusted upward and this will get to the end users’ tariffs too.”
Senator Shehu Sani, a prominent Nigerian lawmaker has accused President Muhammadu Buhari’s government and state governors of secretly selling five power generating plants without disclosing the utilization of the funds received.
He disclosed this in his Twitter handle on Monday.
Senator Sani, known for his outspoken nature and activism expresses his concerns over the alleged undisclosed sale of the power plants.
He claimed that the government, in collaboration with state governors, had carried out the transactions without informing the Nigerian public about the purpose of the funds acquired from the sale.
The post reads “Buhari’s Government in collaboration with the State Governors quietly sold the five power generating plants without telling the country what the money was used for.
The Vice President of Nigeria, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, has inaugurated the Afam 3 Fast Power 240-megawatt turbine project in Rivers State.
The project, which is a subsidiary of the Transcorp Group located in Oyigbo, on the outskirts of Port Harcourt in the state, was unveiled during a ceremony that took place on Tuesday.
The event, which was attended by several dignitaries, including the Chairman of Transcorp Group, Tony Elumelu, and other top officials, saw the Vice President arriving at the venue in a chopper at exactly 11:35 am.
Upon his arrival, he was escorted into the premises where he officially inaugurated the project.
During his speech at the event, he disclosed that the acquisition of the project was approved by the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) and the acquisition cost was ₦105.3 trillion.
Osinbajo further emphasized that the successful completion of the project is a significant breakthrough in Nigeria’s power sector.
In his address, Osinbajo said, “In 2020, electricity subsidies reached N584 billion, but service-based tariffs have led to a doubling of collection in the Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry from N40 billion in 2020 to N80 billion in the first quarter of 2023.
“If this trajectory continues, the Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry will be able to pay for itself. Our administration has also created programs for off-grid for electrification. Rural Electrification Agency now has the capacity to provide electricity supply on a first-class basis.
“We are on track to electrify all Nigerians in the next decade. However, we will not make progress if our gas supply does not improve. The gas supply challenges are hampering improvements.”
He further lauded General Electric, the National Council on Privatization (NCP), and the host communities for their contribution to the completion of the Afam 3 Fast Power 240-megawatt turbine project in Rivers State.
Osinbajo highlighted that the successful completion of the project will significantly increase the country’s power supply capacity, leading to a better quality of life for Nigerians.
In November 2020, the federal government and the Transcorp Power Consortium signed a share sale and purchase agreement in relation to Afam Power Plc and Afam 3 Fast Power Limited.
The National Council on Privatization approved the privatization of the Afam Power Plant back in August 2017, which triggered a competitive bidding process involving 12 prospective investors.
After careful consideration, Transcorp Power Consortium emerged as the preferred bidder with a combined offer of N105 billion.
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