When the Sokoto State government announced in 2008 the award of a multi-million-naira contract for building a power plant, the residents were filled with joy and high expectations. They believed the power plant would address the state’s erratic power supply.
Abdulhakim Sani, a 34-year-old operator of a barbing shop in the state capital, was caught in the excitement.
Abdulhakim said he had anticipated that the power project would boost the operations of artisans in the state, who depended on electricity from the national grid to run their businesses.
“In the Tamaje area where my business is located, we have severe electricity shortages. So, when I learnt that a power plant would be established in Sokoto, I was delighted,” he told NewsNGR in August during an interview.
Mr Abdulhakim is disappointed that the plant was not completed 16 years after the contract was awarded.
Another artisan in the state, Fabian Peter, said he installed a gas-powered generator in his aluminium fabrication workshop after giving up on the power plant. “I lost hope waiting for the proposed power plant,” he said.
Inside Sokoto IPP
The administration of former Governor Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko awarded the contract for the Sokoto Independent Power Power to a local firm, Vulcan Elvaton Limited, and its foreign partner, Vulcan Capital Energy, in 2008 at N3.8 billion. The contract stated that the project would be completed within 18 months.
The plant was designed to generate 38 megawatts of electricity using dual-type turbines intended to be versatile, capable of running on diesel, gas, or Low Pour Fuel Oil (LPFO).
In 2009, Umar Bande, the then director-general of the plant project, invited journalists to witness the plant’s test-running. Mr Bande said the plant had reached the ninth of 11 stages of completion.
However, the contractor did not deliver the project within the stipulated time. In fact, the State Executive Council later approved an additional N1.3 billion for the project. Despite the additional funds, the project remained uncompleted when Governor Wamakko completed his second term in May 2015.
In 2016, Governor Aminu Tambuwal’s succeeding administration again revised the project cost upward by over N1.6 billion on the recommendation of a seven-member committee led by a former Minister of Power, Bello Suleiman. According to a state Ministry of Finance source who spoke off the record with NewsNGR, a rising foreign exchange rate was cited for the review.
“Completed But Not Operational”
In August 2024, NewsNGR visited the facility in the Arkilla area of the state capital. No activity was taking place at the site. A source at the Ministry of Energy confirmed to NewsNGR that most of the cable wires connecting the station plant and other vital components have been stolen.
After several weeks of effort, NewsNGR got Franklin Ngbor, a director of Vulcan Elvaton, the company awarded the contract, to speak about the project.
He asserted that the project was completed. “The plant has been tested several times in the past, indicating that the power unit installation is complete,” he said.
When asked why the plant has not been commissioned, Mr Ngbor said regulatory issues need to be resolved before it can become operational.
“The National Electrical Code (NEC) requires the state to set up a company, which we proposed to be the Sokoto Energy Company, to manage the plant.
“Additionally, a power purchase agreement, fuel supply agreement, and operation and maintenance company must be established.
“These are statutory requirements by NEC that the government needs to provide before giving the go-ahead to operate the plant. Those pending issues need to be addressed before the plant can become operational.
“During the last stakeholders’ meeting, the status of the plant was discussed, and the state is working on resolving these issues. Once these are addressed, we will return to do the final evacuation”, Mr Ngbor told NewsNGR in a phone conversation.
Aminu Ganda, a consultant on the project, corroborated the contractor’s claim.
“There have been issues pending for a while, but the power plant itself is completed,” Mr Ganda said.
“The National Electrical Code (NEC) requires the state to set up a company, which we propose to be the Sokoto Energy Company, to manage the plant.
“Additionally, a power purchase agreement, fuel supply agreement, and operation and maintenance company must be established. These are statutory requirements by NEC that the government needs to provide before giving the go-ahead to operate the plant.”
Mr Ganda also attested that the plant had been tested several times in the past, indicating that the power unit installation is complete.
However, Mr Ngbor said the plant, having been idle for a long time, would need to be checked before it could be operated.
“The plant has been idle for a while, so it’s not anyone’s fault. We need to go back and check the plant, replace any worn-out parts, and perform necessary maintenance before it can become operational,” the permanent secretary of the state Ministry of Energy and Petroleum Resources, Ado Ibrahim Sabon Birnin, also said.
Some Experts Also Raised Other Issues
However, issues have been raised about the viability of the plant when it comes on board.
Yusuf Danladi, an electrical engineer, said the plant’s fuel choice was not well considered.
“Using diesel to power such a plant is unrealistic when considering the cost of diesel. I think the initiators did not conduct adequate feasibility studies before the project.
“What happened was that the project was awarded without thorough consideration of the operational and maintenance costs, which could have significant implications for its long-term viability,” Aliyu Danjibo, a Sokoto-based public analyst, said.
“The project’s feasibility study and contract award process overlooked crucial factors, including the cost of fuel, maintenance, and spare parts, as well as the potential challenges of securing reliable fuel supplies. That is why it failed, and the government does not want to realise that,” Mr Danjibo said.
Sanusi Muhammad, the state Commissioner for Energy and Petroleum Resources, did not respond to several calls and messages to his verified mobile phone number.
During a visit to the ministry in September, the permanent secretary, Mr Sabon Birnin, told NewsNGR that the government is keen to complete and inaugurate the power project.
“The state is working on resolving these issues. Once these are addressed, it will become operational,” he said.
States’ Power Projects In Nigeria
Some states, including Lagos, Ekiti and Cross River, have established independent power plants.
On October 29, 2014, the Lagos State Government commissioned an Independent Power Project owned and operated by CET Power with 8.8MW capacity to provide dedicated electricity to strategic state government facilities and infrastructures.
In 2008, the same year the Sokoto Power Plant was conceived, the Cross River State government built a 27MW plant in Adiabo, a community near Tinapa, and another 23 MW power plant in the Calabar Municipality.
Ekon Samuel, a resident of Calabar, the state capital, told NewsNGR that power generation from the two plants has been steady in the last few years.
The Ekiti State Independent Power Plant commenced operations in 2022 after a successful test run. The IPP, with a 3.5-megawatt capacity generation plant, was established under a Public-Private Partnership arrangement.
Recently, power supply to most states in the northern part of Nigeria was disrupted after bandits cut transmission lines in Niger State. Had the Sokoto power plant been operational, the state would have been spared the misery caused by the sabotage.
Mr Peter would not have needed to convert to a gas-powered generator in his aluminium fabrication workshop in Sokoto.
This story was supported with funding from the Centre for Journalism, Innovation and Development, CJID.