Tag: power

Electricity: Power Distribution Is A Major Problem In Nigeria, Says Mamman

 

The Minister of Power, Saleh Maman, says Nigeria’s major problem with electricity supply is due to the low distribution of 3,000 megawatts.

He stressed that the country can generate up to 13,000mw of electricity, but cannot transmit all.

Mr Maman said after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting on Wednesday that despite the generation, transmission can only take 7,000 and distribution companies can only receive 3,000 because of the technical and commercial losses.

“The problem of our generation is mainly distribution, we can transmit, we can generate; we can generate 13,000, we transmit 7,000 but we can only distribute 3,000; so there is a lot of work to do on transmission companies and the government is willing to take up the matter immediately.

“Most of the problem we are facing today in this country that we cannot get electricity supplies adequately is because we have a problem in distribution.”

READ ALSO: Court Orders Release Of Dasuki’s Passport For Renewal

He stated that the government was in talks with a German firm, Siemens, to be part of solutions it was seeking to address the challenges.

He added that the involvement of Siemens will ensure that Nigerians start enjoying uninterrupted power supply.

“We have to correct the infrastructure, so today I have submitted my observation to the government and I believe that they are on it.

“FG has entered into an MoU with the German government, Siemen who are here to align between distribution, transmission and also generation so that at the end of the day, if we generate 13,000, transmission will take and distribute the same 13,000 so by that time, Nigeria will be happy and everybody will have uninterrupted electricity supply,” he added.

South Africa Faces Severe Blackouts Due To Rain

Another Nigerian Killed In South Africa

 

South Africa’s ailing state power utility on Friday implemented the highest level of electricity rationing after its coal supply was dampened by rain.

Debt-ridden Eskom, which generates 95 percent of the country’s electricity, is reeling from years of corruption and mismanagement under former president Jacob Zuma’s government.

Despite multiple government bailouts, its poorly maintained coal-fired power stations struggle to keep up with the electricity demands of Africa’s most industrialised economy — forcing it to implement rolling blackouts known as loadshedding.

“Eskom has lost additional generation units this morning,” said a company statement on Friday, one day after announcing a new bout of power cuts.

“And with units not having returned to service as scheduled,” it added, “loadshedding (needs) to move up from stage 2 to stage 4”.

The highest stage calls for 4,000 MW — just under 10 percent of Eskom’s maximum effect — to be cut from the national power grid.

Eskom blamed days of “incessant rain” in several parts of the country.

“We are beginning to experience coal-handling problems at a number of our power stations as a result of wet coal,” said the statement.

“If the weather persists, we are likely to implement loadshedding through the weekend.”

Rolling blackouts in February and March plunged businesses, homes and schools into darkness for hours on end.

Loadshedding resumed again in October, when the government unveiled plans to restructure the company and orient it towards more renewable sources of energy.

South Africa has been struggling to salvage state-owned companies from the damage caused by Zuma’s administration.

Its national airline was placed under a business rescue plan this week to avoid its total collapse.

Meanwhile, Eskom has accumulated $30 billion (27 billion euros) of debt and seen 10 CEOs quit in the space of a decade.

The latest left in July citing “unimaginable demands” of the job.

Credit ratings agencies have warned Eskom’s situation could cause downgrades to South Africa’s sovereign credit rating and embarrass President Cyril Ramaphosa, who has vowed to restore the economy after his re-election this year.

AFP

Power Supply: TCN, Experts Ask FG To Recapitalise DISCOs

Senate Passes Power Sector Reform Act Amendment Bill

 

There is an urgent need for the Federal Government to recapitalise the 11 existing Electricity Distribution Companies (DISCOs) across the country.

This was part of the recommendations made by the Managing Director of Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Usman Mohammed, and some experts at an event on Friday in Kaduna State.

They also asked the government to effectively fund the transmission network, in order for Nigeria to overcome the challenges of epileptic power supply.

The recommendations were made at a national discourse on addressing the power sector reforms organised by the Kaduna Polytechnic.

Experts suggested that the 40 per cent shares held by the Federal Government in the DISCOs be divested and sold to investors with technical competence.

According to them, there is a need to ensure that only capable hands drive the sector since the Federal Government cannot sustainably fund power supply.

In his remarks, the TCN boss faulted the privatisation process of the distribution companies in 2013 which led to the mismanagement of electricity distribution in the country.

He insisted that it would be more beneficial to Nigeria and the power sector if the distribution companies were recapitalised to enable competent hands to come in.

A former Director-General of Energy Commission of Nigeria, Professor Abubakar Sambo, also presented a paper on the way forward for the nation’s power sector.

He noted that although the power sector reforms have not led to significant improvement of electricity supply, there was a need to increase the electricity supply base.

Professor Sambo also called for the setting up of more generating companies, adding that more associated evaluating plants should be built with special purpose vehicles.

He stressed the need for the government to review licenses of distribution companies, entrench energy efficiency and conservation, remove obstacles to private sector investment, and enhance transmission network among other recommendations as the way forward.

Earlier, the convener of the event and Rector of Kaduna Polytechnic, Professor Idris Bugaje, opened the floor for discussion.

He decried the long years of neglect of the power sector and highlighted what government should urgently do if it must achieve the goal of the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations by providing all citizens access to electricity by the year 2030.

Delivering his keynote address, the Minister of Power, Sale Mamman, acknowledged that power reform, although well-intentioned, has not made the expected impact largely due to severe structural deficits in both transmission and distribution.

He, however, revealed that the Federal Government has developed five key focal areas to effectively tackle the challenges.

Experts who spoke to reporters on the sideline of the event called for diversification of the power generation from gas and hydro sources into others such as coal, solar, and wind.

Energy Companies Turn To Animal Poo For Clean Power

Marianne Mayer, dog trainer, throws some trash in a bin with a sticker reading “Do you want to give poo a new life?” in Vantaa, Finland on October 7, 2019. Alessandro RAMPAZZO / AFP

 

In the search for clean electricity, power companies in Finland are going green by way of brown, and have set their sights on a previously untapped energy source: animal dung. 

During this month’s FEI World Cup showjumping qualifier at Helsinki International Horse Show, 100 tonnes of manure was loaded up and wheelbarrowed into two large containers before being carted away for incineration at the Järvenpää power plant.

The 150 megawatts of energy generated is enough to power the whole four-day show, with some left over to heat homes in the Finnish capital, according to energy company Fortum which launched its “Horse Power” initiative five years ago.

“There are so many horses in Finland and of course many more around the world, so it would be amazing if we could turn all that poo into energy,” Fortum’s Krista Hellgren told AFP.

The company claims that the manure produced daily by two horses can generate heat for a single family home for a year.

And just 200 millilitres’ worth is enough to charge a phone.

Meanwhile, another power company has called for the public to send them their pets’ doings.

Vantaan Energia’s sticker and online campaign implores dog owners to “give poo a new life” by simply throwing it in the bin, from where it follows everyday refuse to a huge waste-to-energy incineration plant.

“It’s not nice to step on it, it’s much nicer to burn it and use it as a fuel for electricity and heat,” the firm’s production director Kalle Patomeri told AFP.

Though dog poo is still a tiny fraction of the 1,000 tonnes of household rubbish burnt every day, Patomeri says it helps produce efficient energy with limited emissions and leftover waste products.

As a result, Vantaan Energia hopes to be coal-free within just over two years.

The dung-to-energy drive has been welcomed by dog trainer Marianne Mayer who actively supports the cause. She says the 50 dogs on her client list produce “quite a lot” of poo every week, which may otherwise have been left on the forest floor or thrown into bio waste.

“Finally someone’s doing something concrete about it, so you know it’s going to be energy,” she told AFP. “Since we need to have other energy than fossils, it’s going to be really positive.”

AFP

Millions Affected As California Shuts Power To Prevent Wildfires

 

Rolling blackouts affecting up to 800,000 customers began Wednesday in parts of California as a utility company switched off power because of hot, windy weather that raises the risk of wildfires.

Pacific Gas & Electric, which announced the three-phase deliberate power outage, is working to prevent a repeat of a catastrophe last November in which power lines it owned were determined to have sparked California’s deadliest wildfire ever.

In that inferno, 85 people died and a town called Paradise was virtually destroyed. The company has been found responsible for dozens of other wildfires in recent years, too.

This is peak wildfire season in California.

PG&E said the severe weather incident prompting the precautions this time — hot, dry conditions and winds gusting at up to 70 mph (110 kph) — is expected to last through mid-day Thursday in parts of northern and central California.

The outages could last up to a week in some places. Some 800,000 customers actually means millions of people will be affected.

The city of San Francisco is not affected by the intentional shutoff but much of the surrounding Bay Area could go dark including parts of Silicon Valley.

The first part of the so-called Public Safety Power Shutoff began at midnight Tuesday into Wednesday in northern California in a broad swath of land that includes the Napa Valley wine country. It will affect around 513,000 customers there, the utility company said.

The rest of the San Francisco Bay area was to start losing power in waves around noon local time. A possible third third phase could take place later in the day farther south.

Schools and universities cancelled classes for Wednesday and people stocked up on gasoline, water, batteries and other basics, news reports said.

PG&E said it expected to start turning the power back on on Thursday but can only do this after inspecting its equipment for damage and this could take days in some areas.

AFP

Advise Buhari To Obey Court Order On Electricity Contracts, SERAP Tells Malami

SERAP Threatens To Sue UI, AAUA Over Increased Fees

 

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has asked the Attorney General of the Federation, Mr Abukabar Malami, to advise President Muhammadu Buhari to enforce the judgment by Justice Chuka Austine Obiozor, ordering the immediate release of details of payments to all defaulting and corrupt electricity contractors and companies since 1999.

Deputy Director of the agency, Kolawole Oluwadare, in a letter said that the enforcement of the judgment will go a long way in protecting the integrity of the legal system.

He further stated that enforcing the judgement would prove the government’s commitment to the rule of law, and contribute to addressing the culture and legacy of corruption in the power sector.

See full statement below.

Advise Buhari to obey judgment on release of payment details on electricity contracts, SERAP tells Malami

Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged Mr Abukabar Malami, SAN, Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice to use his “special role as the Chief Law Officer of Nigeria to advise and persuade President Muhammadu Buhari to fully and effectively enforce the judgment by Justice Chuka Austine Obiozor ordering the immediate release of details of payments to all defaulting and allegedly corrupt electricity contractors and companies since 1999.”

Justice Obiozor, a Professor of Law, sitting at the Federal High Court, Lagos, had in July delivered a judgment in a Freedom of Information suit number FHC/L/CS/105/19, brought by SERAP, ordering the Federal Government to disclose and publish the names of companies and the whereabouts of the contractors paid by successive governments to carry out electricity projects but disappeared with the money without executing any projects.”

In the open letter dated 13 September 2019 and signed by SERAP deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare, the organization said: “The enforcement of this judgment will be a special moment for the government’s anti-corruption agenda and the sovereignty of rule of law, as it would go a long way in protecting the integrity of our legal system.

“We urge you to make best efforts to advise and persuade President Buhari and Mr Sale Mamman, Minister of Power to begin to take steps that will ensure the full enforcement of this ground-breaking judgment.”

SERAP said: “Advising and persuading Mr Buhari and Mr Mamman to enforce the judgment against corrupt contractors and companies would show your commitment to the rule of law, and contribute to addressing the culture and legacy of corruption in the power sector.

It will show that you are not just Mr Buhari’s lawyer but also a defender of the Nigerian Constitution of 1999 (as amended), the rule of law and public interest within the government, something which Justice Obiozor’s judgment seeks to serve.”

The letter read in part: “It is emphatically the province and constitutional duty of the Attorney General to advise on the enforcement of judicial decisions. It is important to do so here if power sector contractors and companies are not to continue to evade justice for their alleged corruption.”

“Taking action as recommended would be in keeping with Nigerians’ expectations, and entirely consistent with Buhari’s oft-expressed commitment to ‘kill’ corruption–whether by public officials or private contractors—and help to build citizens’ trust and confidence in the ability of this government to take head-on the systemic corruption in the power sector.”

“Our democracy needs courts so that public officials and private actors including contractors can be held accountable for any infraction of Nigerian anti-corruption laws and international commitments. Constitutionalism and the rule of law are not in conflict with democracy; rather, they are essential to it.”

“We hope that the aspects highlighted will help guide your actions in advising and persuading Mr Buhari and Mr Mamman to enforce and implement Justice Obiozor’s judgment. We would be happy to provide further information or to discuss any of these issues in more detail with you.”

“A certified true copy of the judgment is enclosed with this letter for your attention and urgent action.”

It would be called that SERAP had in February filed the FoI suit against the Federal Government and former Minister of Power Mr Babatunde Fashola. The former minister then responded, saying that: “the Ministry has searched for the requested information on details of alleged contractors and companies but we could not find it from our records.”

SERAP said: “During the 20 years of Nigeria’s democracy successive governments have failed to increase power generation and provide Nigerians with regular and uninterrupted electricity supply, with many electricity contracts shrouded in secrecy, and trillions of Naira going down the drain.”

“Ordinary Nigerians have continued to pay the price for corruption in the electricity sector, as the country has remained in darkness despite huge investment in the power sector by successive governments.”

In summary, Justice Obiozor in his judgment granted the following reliefs:

A DECLARATION is hereby made that the failure and/or refusal of the Respondent [Federal Government/Ministry of Power] to provide SERAP with documents and information containing the specific names and details of contractors and companies that have been engaged in the power sector by successive governments since 1999, details, of specific projects and the amounts that have been paid to the contractors and companies, details on the level of implementation of electricity projects and their specific locations across the country, and failure to widely publish it on a dedicated website, any of such information, amounts to a breach of the obligations under the Freedom of Information Act 2011

A DECLARATION is hereby made that the failure and/or refusal of the Respondent [Federal Government/Ministry of Power] to provide SERAP with specific documents and information containing the specific names and details of contractors and companies that allegedly collected money for electricity projects from successive governments since 1999 but failed to execute any of such projects, and failure to widely publish it on a dedicated website, any of such information, amounts to a breach of the Respondent’s responsibility/obligation under the Freedom of Information Act 2011

AN ORDER OF MANDAMUS is made directing and compelling the Respondent [Federal Government/Ministry of Power] to urgently compile and make available to SERAP documents and information containing the specific names and details of contactors and companies that have been engaged in the power sector by successive governments since the return of democracy in 1999 to date, details of specific projects and the amounts that have been paid to the contracts and companies, details on the level of implementation of electricity projects and their specific locations across the country and to publish widely including on a dedicated website, any of such information

AN ORDER OF MANDAMUS is made directing and compelling the Respondent [Federal Government/Ministry of Power] to urgently compile and make available to SERAP documents and information containing the specific names and details of contactors and companies that allegedly collected money for electricity projects from successive governments since 1999 but failed to execute any projects.

A DECLARATION is hereby made that the failure and/or refusal of the Respondent [Federal Government/Ministry of Power] to urgently disclose if there is an ongoing investigation or prosecution of allegedly corrupt contractors and companies in the electricity sector, amounts to a breach of the Respondent’s responsibility/obligation under the Freedom of Information Act 2011.

AN ORDER OF MANDAMUS is made directing and compelling the Respondent [Federal Government/Ministry of Power] to urgently disclose if there is an ongoing investigation or prosecution of allegedly corrupt contractors and companies in the electricity sector.

Kolawole Oluwadare
SERAP Deputy Director
15/09/2019
Lagos, Nigeria

Power: Buhari Asks DisCos To Improve On Electricity Distribution

 

President Muhammadu Buhari has asked DisCos to improve on electricity distribution across the country, assuring the companies that the Federal Government will sustain efforts in building transmission infrastructure.

The President stated this when he received a delegation of Edo State Council of Traditional Rulers and chiefs led by Oba Ewuare II at the State House.

He called on Nigerians to show more understanding with the DisCos and Federal Government as more expertise and resources would be committed to improving electricity.

The President said the supply of gas for transmission has improved over time and with the collective effort of Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and Discos the power situation would be made better.

“We are building infrastructure. We are doing our best, but, obviously, our best is not good enough yet,’’ he said.

President Buhari commended Oba Ewuare II and Edo Sate Traditional Council for intervention in human trafficking by tracking down and discouraging facilitators and rehabilitating victims that were returned.

“I am pleased that you have taken up the fight against human trafficking and I know the effect of your intervention will be felt beyond our borders,’’ he added.

On Benin-Abuja road project, the President assured the Edo State leaders that the Ministry of Works will give more attention to the project when ministers assume duty.

READ ALSO: Osinbajo To Represent Buhari At Rwandan Liberation Anniversary

President Buhari told the elders that the Federal Government was able to achieve food security with teamwork between the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Ministry of Agriculture, states and other stakeholders including farmers, promising that more will be done to diversify and strengthen the Nigerian economy.

In his remarks, Oba Ewuare II congratulated the President for winning the 2019 elections, urging him to utilise the opportunity to improve the livelihood of the people, particularly issues that directly impact on development like electricity and road infrastructure.

“We pray the almighty God to help you put in place a formidable team of men and women of proven integrity that will join you to take this nation to the next level. Considering that Edo State is the only APC state in the South-South, may we crave Mr President’s indulgence to have two slots,’’ he said.

The traditional ruler said the situation of electricity in Edo had worsened over the years, adding: “May I, on behalf of the people of Edo State, use this platform to further appeal to Mr President to intervene in this pathetic situation.’’

The traditional ruler, who listed the Benin-Abuja road as a project that will help Edo indigenes, said he placed a curse on all native doctors that facilitate human trafficking in the state, and the fear of reprisal had yielded positive results.

He also appreciated President Buhari for approving the National Festival of Arts and Culture (NAFEST) to be held in Edo State, which, according to him, will showcase the rich culture of the people and drive his legacy museum project.

Senate Passes Power Sector Reform Act Amendment Bill

Senate Passes Power Sector Reform Act Amendment Bill

 

The Nigerian Senate has passed the Electric Power Sector Reform Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019.

This followed the consideration of the report of the Senate Committee on Power, Steel Development, and Metallurgy, during plenary on Tuesday.

The report was presented by the committee chairman and lawmaker representing Abia-South senatorial district, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe.

READ ALSO: El-Rufai Gives Political Appointees Till April 30 To Resign

The billed was thereafter read and passed for the third time.

The lawmakers also considered reports on two other bills – Chemical Weapons (Prohibition) Bill, 2019, and the National Board for Technical Education (Repeal and Re-enactment) Bill, 2019.

Committee Chairman on Science and Technology, Senator Barau Jibrin, and that of Tertiary Institutions and TETFUND, Senator Barau Jibrin, presented the bills respectively.

Both bills were also read and passed for the third time.

Power Problem: Some States Have Almost 24 Hours Supply, Says Fashola

 

Mr Babatunde Fashola, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing has said that some cities in Nigeria can now boast of constant power supply.

He made the assertion on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Wednesday.

“Sitting down here I can tell you some states that have almost 24 hours – Kebbi, Yobe. Some have five, some have 10 and there are still outages,” Fashola said.

He said the constant power supply in some states is due to the increase in the transmission capacity, noting that the transmission capacity has grown to about 8,100 watts as of December 2018.

He said the Ministry of Power has moved forward but needs to implement the short term goals it set.

READ ALSO: Presidential Election Results Were Accredited By Observers To Be In Conformity With The Law – Fashola

Fashola also spoke about programmes which the ministry have put in place to ensure adequate power supply across the nation.

“The government has decided that as 40 per cent holder of everything in the distribution of power, we have our programme to invest N72 billion which will involve installing transformers and all of that.

“We created a metre access provider regulation. What it does is to create a new plan of investment programme. We manufacture, produce, supply and install metres and fill the gap the distribution companies cannot raise capital to fill. They cannot do so alone, they must do so under a procurement policy with the distribution company,” he said.

The former Lagos State governor said the Federal Government will solve the problems of poor power supply in the country and will continue to keep the people informed as to the watts being consumed in the country.

Presidential Election Results Were Accredited By Observers To Be In Conformity With The Law – Fashola

 

The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, says the presidential election results were accredited by both international and local observers, to be in conformity with the law.

He stated this on Wednesday during an interview on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily.

“The presidential election results were widely accredited by the observers to be in conformity with the law. The European Union, ECOWAS Commission, the African Union all said that they were satisfied with what they saw,” he stated.

According to Fashola, the election that saw President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC) emerge the winner against Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is what he described as the voters’ choice.

Although the elections have come and gone, he believes that any aggrieved party should be free to challenge the result in court.

The Minister noted that APC’s victory at the polls is a clear demonstration that the people believe in the current administration.

READ ALSO: Elections: Tribunal Grants PDP, Atiku Access To Serve Buhari, APC Petition

“What the people have voted for is what we have continued to canvass, that we are better than the other side. Our results over the last three and the half years show that we have moved a little forward and they have entrusted us with the mandate to consolidate on what we have done.”

Speaking on electoral reforms, Fashola said he would like to see a situation whereby politicians would discipline themselves to accept the outcome of elections.

He also wants the coming 9th National Assembly to work hard to ensure that reforms are made in the area of finances spent during elections.

This is because he believes the amount spent for a presidential candidate of a political party is at least one billion naira.

When asked on his plans to address the nation’s problems associated with power, the Minister identified distribution level as the main challenge of power.

“We set out short term goals in my ministry. First, we have delivered on incremental power and we will continue to increase.

“We are hopeful to see that at this next level of obligation, what we want to see is more of incremental power and stable power in some places. I can tell you of some states that have stable power today.

“Kebbi, Yobe are examples. Some have five, some have eight (hours). And even all of these is still a little fragile and we need to consolidate. The issues at the distribution end of metering, outdated assets. Some of these assets, when I went to Aba for example, the substation was installed in 1960 and there was expansion after that,” he added.

China Offers To Help Venezuela Restore Power After Blackout

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro/ AFP

 

China on Wednesday offered to help Venezuela bring its collapsing power grid back online as President Nicolas Maduro sought to stave off rising public anger that is bolstering his US-backed rival Juan Guaido.

A vast blackout that struck Venezuela nearly a week ago — the worst in its history — has deepened the South American country’s already a grave economic crisis, especially by disrupting the supply of drinking water.

Although electricity has since been restored to most of the capital Caracas, water was having to be trucked in, and western swaths of the country remain without power.

READ ALSO: Lebanon Closes Airspace To Boeing 737 MAX

“No water, no power, no medicine, no cash, no transport. This has been dreadful,” one Caracas resident, Victoria Milano, 40, told AFP.

Guaido, an opposition leader whose claim to be Venezuela’s interim president is backed by the US and 50 other countries, told supporters on Tuesday he expected to have military chiefs on his side and take over the presidential palace “very soon.”

“This desperation and darkness is caused by the dictatorship,” Guaido said, alleging that around 20 people had died in hospital because of the power cut.

Venezuela’s pro-Maduro prosecutor’s office has hit back with a criminal investigation against Guaido for “sabotage,” alleging he had a hand in the blackout. But the opposition leader remains free after the US warned of “consequences” if he were arrested.

 Maduro sees ‘victory’

Maduro has accused Washington of waging “cybernetic” and “electromagnetic” attacks against Venezuela’s Guri hydroelectric plant, which provides power to 80 percent of the country’s 30 million inhabitants.

As he declared “victory” on television late Tuesday, claiming power had been restored “in almost all” the nation, Caracas residents in formerly middle-class neighborhoods banged pots in the street in protest.

Experts said an attack by a foreign state actor on Venezuela’s grid was possible, but unlikely.

“Knowing Venezuela, it was likely an internal failure,” Jeff Middleton, the chief technology officer at The Vault Foundation, a company that secures crypto currency transactions, told AFP.

Venezuela’s infrastructure has degraded over years because of lack of investment, a significant brain drain, and the government’s practice of putting the military in charge of key civilian facilities and companies. That has impacted not only the electricity grid but also the country’s vital oil industry.

The situation has worsened with successive rounds of US sanctions against Maduro’s regime, including steps that have severely curbed its oil exports.

 China, Spain offer help 

While much of Latin America and Europe have thrown their weight behind Guaido with a view to forcing presidential elections in Venezuela, Maduro has the support of Russia and China, major creditors and buyers of Venezuelan oil.

China on Wednesday said it stood ready to help Venezuela get its electricity up and running again.

“China hopes that Venezuela can quickly find the cause of this accident and restore normal power and social order,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said at a regular briefing in Beijing.

“China is willing to offer assistance and technical support to Venezuela to restore the power system,” Lu said.

The spokesman said China was “very concerned” about reports of a cyber attack, but declined to directly blame the United States.

Spain, one of the EU countries strongly backing Guaido, also offered help to fix Venezuela’s “badly deteriorated” electricity system.

According to Ecoanalitica, an economic analysis firm, the blackout had by Tuesday cost Venezuela $875 million.

“There is major paralysis in many critical areas in the oil sector,” it said, estimating that up to 70 percent of the one million barrels of oil a day Venezuela still managed to produce could end up being affected.

AFP

No Names Of Alleged Corrupt Contractors From Our Record, Fashola Tells SERAP

No Names Of Alleged Corrupt Contractors From Our Record, Fashola Tells SERAP
A file photo of Mr Babatunde Fashola

 

The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola says his ministry could not get the names of corrupt contractors alleged to have looted funds in the power sector.

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) in a statement on Sunday by its Deputy Director, Mr Kolawole Oluwadare, said Fashola noted that the ministry does not have information on corrupt looters in its record.

“We have searched the ministry’s record and the information you applied for is not held by the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing (Power Sector),” the minister was quoted as saying.

Fashola’s comments come barely a month after SERAP filed a Freedom of Information (FOI) request, asking him to publish the names of contractors who have failed to meet the terms of contracts they signed from 1999 to 2018.

READ ALSO: SERAP To Fashola: Publish Names Of Contractors Who Disappeared With Project Money

SERAP made the call following allegations by Mr Atiku Abubakar, a former vice president and presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Responding through the Director of Legal Services in the ministry, Mrs Shoetan Adesola, Mr Fashola acknowledged the request, stressing that the issue has been resolved under the FOI Act.

“The Ministry has searched for the requested information on details of alleged contractors and companies that collected money for electricity projects and failed to execute any projects, but we could not find it from our records.

“I am directed to acknowledge the receipt of your letter dated 4th January 2019 in which you applied for the request to disclose details of alleged corrupt contractors and companies that collected money for electricity projects but failed to execute any projects. The request has been handled under the FOI Act,” she stated.

The organisation had in January sued the Minister for failing to disclose specific names and details of contractors and companies that allegedly collected money for electricity projects but failed to execute them.