Gas supply to the 188MW Geometric Power Plant in Aba, Abia State, has been restored three days after it was suspended due to a gas leak and technical issue, known as a process upset, at the Associated Gas Gathering (AGG) facilities of a major local oil and gas company in neighbouring Rivers State.
The supply resumed last night, and by 9:02 p.m., one of the plant’s 47MW turbines had already begun producing 25MW of electricity. This was confirmed by mechanical engineer and power consultant Dike Ejike during an interview with journalists this morning.
“By 11 a.m. today, it was generating 37.44MW, and by 2 p.m., it had risen to 39.5MW,” said Ejike. “It is increasing gradually.”
Ejike explained that the total electricity available to residents in nine out of the 17 local government areas in Abia State, which make up the Aba Ring-fenced Area, is now almost 65MW. This is because Aba Power, the company that distributes electricity from the Geometric Power group, still receives an additional 25MW from the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC).
He added, “More individuals, businesses, industries, non-profit organizations, and communities have been receiving supplies since the gas supply issue was resolved, and supplies have been growing.”
Engineer Cliff Eneh, a well-known power consultant based in Lagos and a former top official with the now-defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), praised Heirs Energies, the operator of Oil Mining Lease (OML) 17, which provides gas to Geometric Power and other users, for their efforts in solving the problem.
“The engineers and the entire technical team at Heirs Energies,” he observed, “worked tirelessly and efficiently in a way typically associated with international oil companies (IOCs) like Shell, ExxonMobil, TotalEnergies, Chevron, Agip, British Petroleum, etc. But Heirs Energies is a new indigenous Nigerian firm giving the nation hope.”
“They did not care that it was a weekend or the Easter holiday period, but worked with tremendous commitment and dedication to fix the problem, so that electricity customers in the Aba Ring-fenced Area would have light during this critical period.”
Engr. Eneh also said he believes Heirs Energies will continue to show the same level of commitment whenever gas supply problems happen again.
“I am confident that Nigerian engineers will go places if given the opportunity,” he concluded.
