President Bola Tinubu has said he is committed to a new deal to speed up the delivery of the Siemens Energy power project that will ultimately deliver a reliable supply of electricity to Nigerian homes.

Mr Tinubu said this in his New Year broadcast on Monday.

“Just this past December during COP28 in Dubai, the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz and I agreed and committed to a new deal to speed up the delivery of the Siemens Energy power project that will ultimately deliver a reliable supply of electricity to our homes and businesses under the Presidential Power Initiative, which began in 2018,” Mr Tinubu said.

“Other power installation projects to strengthen the reliability of our transmission lines and optimise the integrity of our National grid are ongoing across the country.

“My administration recognises that no meaningful economic transformation can happen without a steady electricity supply,” he added.

The Nigerian government and Germany had earlier, in December 2023, signed an agreement to accelerate the Siemens power project.

Mr Tinubu and German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, witnessed the signing of an accelerated performance agreement aimed at expediting the implementation of the Presidential Power Initiative (PPI) to improve the electricity supply in Nigeria.

The event took place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

A statement by Ajuri Ngelale, Special Adviser to the President on Media and publicity, said the agreement, consummated on the sidelines of the COP28 climate summit, was signed by Kenny Anuwe, the Managing Director and CEO of FGN Power Company, and Nadja Haakansson, Siemens Energy’s Senior Vice President and Managing Director for Africa.

The PPI, formerly known as the Nigeria Electrification Roadmap Initiative, was the outcome of the visit of former German Chancellor Angela Merkel to Abuja in August 2018.

An agreement was signed between the governments of Nigeria and Germany in 2019 to improve the power sector.

President Bola Tinubu, since assuming office, has consistently advocated the accelerated realisation and expansion of the PPI.

To achieve this, the project has been a major focal point in three rounds of bilateral discussions at several meetings between the president and the German Chancellor, in New Delhi, Abuja and Berlin.

Mr Ajuri said the agreement signed will see to the end-to-end modernisation and expansion of Nigeria’s electric power transmission grid with the full supply, delivery and installation of Siemens-manufactured equipment under a timeline of 18 to 24 months.

Furthermore, he said the agreement will ensure project sustainability and maintenance with full technology transfer and training for Nigerian engineers at the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).

Culled from Premium Times Nigeria