Ayodele Olalere
The Lagos State government has emphasized the indispensability of a stable and sustainable power supply to the realization of the vision for a Greater Lagos premised on the THEMES Agenda of Governor Babajide Oluhola Sanwo-Olu’ administration. Speaking at the Lagos State Electricity Policy Stakeholder Consultation Session, on Wednesday, hosted by his Ministry, the Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources, Engr. Olalere Odusote highlighted that the Policy will serve as a key driver for the socio-economic development of Lagos State.
He emphasized that Lagos State is the commercial nerve centre and the most populous State in Nigeria, adding that good governance has made Lagos the immigrant destination for Nigerians from outside the state and as such requires significant sustainable energy solutions.
The Attorney General and Honourable Commissioner, Lagos State Ministry of Justice, Mr. Moyosore Onigbanjo, SAN, in his remarks explained that the move to create the Lagos Electricity Market was a deliberate policy initiative of the State Government that rested on the powers vested in the State by Section 14 of the Concurrent Legislative in the 1999 Constitution.
He also made clear that while the state government was keen to work collaboratively with the Federal Government to transition regulation of electricity distribution within Lagos to a State regulator.
In presenting key elements of the Lagos Electricity Policy at the online event, the CEO of Excredite Consulting Limited, Mr. Eyo Ekpo, Consultant to the State Government, stated that “Electricity Reliability for Lagos State means to supply that is available to any customer in the State Electricity Market in the desired quality and quantity at the time it is needed’’.
He explained the State’s key short and medium-term sector objectives including the enactment of an electricity law by 31st December 2021 to achieve 30% year-on-year capacity and energy growth from 1,000MW/12,000MWh today to 12,000MW/162,000MWh by 2028 and noted the eight building blocks that the state government would put in place to establish a credible and sustainable State electricity market.
Dolapo Kukoyi, Consultant, UK FCDO African Clean Energy Technical Assistance Facility (ACE TAF) who supported the Lagos State government on the off-grid energy aspects noted the great value of off-grid solutions (OGS) in rapidly deploying clean technologies to bring electricity access to the State’s underserved and unserved areas and thus reduce poverty, improve social equity and inclusion and job creation.
She noted that the Ministry of Energy & Mineral Resources will lead the development of an OGS strategy and plan, to be executed by a specialised agency set up for the purpose.
The presentation of the policy was followed by various comments and questions from various stakeholders that were overwhelmingly supportive of the State Government’s initiative. In concluding, Engr. Odusote enjoined stakeholders to work with the state to achieve its aspirations for the Lagos Electricity Market which should drive wider access to reliable power supply, reduce the cost of living and doing business in Lagos.
