South Africa is now emulating the Nigerian Power Sector Privatization model for the transformation of its ailing energy sector, the Hon. Minister of State - Power, Hon. Mohammed Wakil has said.
According to him, this is a vindication of the durability of the policies and programmes of the President Goodluck Jonathan Administration of which power is one of its major components.
Speaking today, at the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Government and TBEA Co Ltd of China for the Development of Transmission Lines and Substations in Nigeria, the Minister drew attention to the crisis rocking the South African power sector which has necessitated the country to draft a power sector privatization bill now before its parliament.
“Nigeria has become a model for power sector reforms in Africa. We must commend Mr. President for this”, the Minister reiterated.
Hon. Wakil further stated that the need to improve on the nation’s transmission sub-stations cannot be over emphasized, as all the efforts geared towards generation and distribution of power, cannot receive a face-lift, without a corresponding wheeling power through a reliable and strong transmission network.
He therefore enjoined the Company not to only develop transmission lines and build transmission Sub-stations but to also fulfill its earlier promise of setting up a transformer manufacturing company in
Africa by situating it in Nigeria, he assured that it will assist Nigeria in the development of a robust transmission outlet.
Hon. Wakil called on the Corporation to also provide adequate training for the Nigerian workforce, through its support for local content policy of Government, he assured the company that government will on its part, give full cooperation in order to ensure a smooth take-off for the Company in Nigeria.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Company, Mr. Sheng Shuangxu called on the government to facilitate the acquisition of relevant data as well as the execution of needed commercial agreements as may be required for the bankability of the project.
He disclosed that the conglomerate was a world-class manufacturer of electrical products, serving over 147 countries in the world, adding that it was glad doing business with Nigeria, the largest country on the African continent.
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