An emerging energy hub right around the corner

the Bauchi State Executive Council had vide its memo of 25th March 2009 approved the establishment of the Yankari Power Company of Nigeria (YPCN) Limited. The Government registered the Company in September 2009 and was recently awarded a license by Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) for the 135 megawatts capacity Power Plant. The government is […]

the Bauchi State Executive Council had vide its memo of 25th March 2009 approved the establishment of the Yankari Power Company of Nigeria (YPCN) Limited. The Government registered the Company in September 2009 and was recently awarded a license by Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) for the 135 megawatts capacity Power Plant. The government is aiming at generating 2000 megawatts by 2017.
To avoid logistic constraints, the Yankari Power Plant located at Gudun Industrial Estate in Bauchi is designed as a dual-fuel facility. Instead of depending solely on fuel oil from the Kaduna Refinery and Petrochemical Company and the coastal refineries at Port-Harcourt and Warri, the plant could be alternately powered by natural gas from the River Kolmani oil and gas field.
The company intends to utilise either heavy fuel or gas from Low Pour Fuel Oil from the Kaduna Refinery to fire the plant located adjacent to the PHCN’s 132/33KVA substation for cheap and easy evacuation and distribution on the National Grid.
Already adequate land for immediate construction and future expansion has been secured; with maximum proximity to sources of fuel and to transmission lines for easy evacuation point as well as and minimal environmental impact. The turbine frames and machines are being fabricated by General Electric (GE) with optimum consideration for minimum pollution. Indeed, the entire YPCN concept is environmentally friendly as it would reduce the use of petroleum products and fuel wood thereby reducing deforestation.
To resolve fuel storage challenges, YPCN has commissioned Arewa Metal Containers to design, fabricate and install fuel storage tanks in the tank farm as part of balance of the plant. The company has also signed an agreement with Nigerian Truck Manufacturers Limited in Kano for the procurement of 50 heavy-duty fuel haulage tankers to bridge the products.
Meanwhile, the discovery of crude petroleum and natural gas in commercial quantities in Kolmani River in Alkaleri Local Government Area makes Bauchi State the first potential producer of hydro-carbons in the North and make the siting of an oil refinery in the state pertinent. The natural gas reserves are estimated at 100 billion Standard Cubic Feet which can last for 25-30 years. Ongoing exploratory activities seem certain to uncover more oil and gas wells.
At least three major gas projects are expected from these discoveries. One is natural gas for electric power generation, raw materials for the petrochemical/pharmaceutical industries and more importantly a major bulwark for the nation’s food security via massive fertiliser production.
Similarly, affordable and available power supply will not only support the abundant tourism potentials in the state but facilitate the industrial and commercial growth of the entire northeast zone which constitutes about one quarter of the federation. For instance, it is very easy to imagine what value regular and sufficient electricity will add just to the Yankari Premier Game Reserve, the second largest and best in Africa!
Summing up the scale of achievement expected from the multibillion Naira power project and ongoing fruitful prospecting for hydrocarbons, Governor Isa Yuguda declared recently that “What these mean is that Bauchi State will become the largest power producer in Nigeria. It will become the energy hub of Northern Nigeria because, then, it should be able to export electricity to other neighbouring states within the North and even across the borders to Cameroon, Chad and Niger.”
The meticulously planned power initiative even has provisions for constructively deploying the expected revenue flows from the venture. According to the master-plan, the earnings from the power plant and hydrocarbons would be invested by the state government specifically in the provision of infrastructural facilities in rural areas of the state and to further widen the economic base of the state. Some of these innovative infrastructures include renewable energy sources such as solar, wind and geothermal power.
Apart from facilitating the full revival of major industries in the state such as the Nigerian Asbestos Industry, Zaki Flour Mills Azare, Arewa Ceramics Misau, Ashaka Cement, the Bauchi Meat Factory and the Bauchi Furniture Company, earnings from the power sector will be partly invested in the mining and processing of major solid mineral resources in the state such as columbite, uranium, lime and tantalite. Today, with just about 5000 megawatts available nationwide, Nigeria can do with more projects like the YPCN Limited. Its model could also serve as the wake-up call for other equally endowed states of the federation and be the catalyst for a greater Nigeria in the nearest future.
Shehu writes from Bauchi