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US Investor To Deliver 1,200mw Solar Power …PHED, Bank Sign Pre-metering Deal

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Perm Sect  Min of Intormation and Communication, Mrs Cordilia Peterside addressing participants during 2014 Skills Acquisition organised by Divine Daughters of Destiny of Redemption Ministries PHC.  With her is  Pastor (Mrs) M. Akinola (left) any Pastor (Mrs) Briggs, recently. Photo: Nwiueh Donatus Ken

Perm Sect Min of Intormation and Communication, Mrs Cordilia Peterside addressing participants during 2014 Skills Acquisition organised by Divine Daughters of Destiny of Redemption Ministries PHC. With her is Pastor (Mrs) M. Akinola (left) any Pastor (Mrs) Briggs, recently. Photo: Nwiueh Donatus Ken

A consortium of American investors in renewable energy, under the auspices of MOTIR SEASPIRE, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Federal Ministry of Power to deliver in two years, 1,200 megawatts of solar powered electricity in Nigeria.
The proposed solar technology to be installed in Nigeria will be of United States standard, according to the Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo, as he assured that the consortium had the capacity to increase the scope of project up to 10,000MW in the next five years.
A statement from the power ministry quoted the President/CEO, MOTIR SEASPIRE, Mr. Emmanuel Irono, as saying that the team had a portfolio of over $5bn that could be accessed over a period of five years into its integrated renewable energy projects.
He said the initial 1,200MW will be realised in the next two years, adding that the local content component of 80 per cent Nigerians will make the country the hub of its activities in Africa.
He said, “As a compatriot, the concern for providing employment to the teeming populace will be a plus to the company’s quest for provision of training for the Nigerian workforce in the power sector in general and renewable energy in particular.”
Responding, the minister of power said he was excited that a compatriot was making this giant stride of harnessing the vast potentials of energy in solar.
Meanwhile, in a move to make pre-paid meter available to electricity customers, Ecobank Nigeria Plc and Port-Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHED) have signed a special agreement whereby their customers can secure finance for the acquisition of prepaid meters under the Credited Advanced Payment for Metering Implementation (CAPMI) scheme.
The scheme, CAPMI is a special programme initiated by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, (NERC), that allows willing electricity customers to make payment to distribution companies for pre-paid meters and such payment is then refunded back to the customer through deductions from the monthly electricity bills.
The scheme being introduced by Ecobank, one of the commercial Bank under the name CAPMI Credit, avails willing customers the opportunity of securing microfinance for pre-paid meter acquisition from PHED.
While signing the agreement last Thursday in Port-Harcourt, Rivers State, Executive Director, South-South and South-East, Ecobank, Mr. Kingsley Umadia, stated that CAPMI Credit was designed to help bring solution to the huge metering gap that was currently being experienced in the power sector.
Umadia noted that the acquisition of pre-paid meter would also stop the estimated bill, noting that electricity had been known to be a driver of economic prosperity.
He said  that Ecobank decided to partner with PHED to help actualize the development of the sector for the country’s economic growth, adding that no country would function well without effective power.
In his own part, the, Chief Executive Officer, PHED, Mr. Jon Abbas, disclosed that the partnership with Ecobank was necessary as the bank had been a leading partner in service provision to customers.
Abbas stated that the deal was struck in order to achieve the company’s vision of being a leading utility in Nigeria as according to him, no country can function effectively without power, hence we work to ensure that power in the country is stable.
The Assistant General Manager, Customer Services, PHED, Mr. Godwin Orovwiroro, while making presentation on the scheme, explained that CAPMI credit would run alongside the regular CAPMI scheme that requires customers to make cash payment for meters.
Orovwiroro further explained that all categories of meters including single phase and three-phase were accommodated in the Ecobank finance scheme.
‘’Under CAPMI, electricity distribution companies repay the cost of prepaid meters back to customers who purchase them at 12% of the cost.’’,he said.
PHED is the electricity distribution company that serves four states in the south-south namely Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross and Rivers States.

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FG Ends Passport Production At Multiple Centres After 62 Years

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The Nigeria Immigration Service has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.

Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed this yesterday while inspecting Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja.

He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.

“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.

He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.

“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.

 “We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.

“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.

He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.

Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.

He said the centralised production system aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for better service delivery.

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FAAC Disburses N2.225trn For August, Highest In Nigeria

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The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has disbursed N2.225 trillion as federation revenue for the month of August 2025, the highest ever allocation to the three tiers of government and other statutory recipients.

This marks the second consecutive month that FAAC disbursements have crossed the N2 trillion mark.

The revenue, shared at the August 2025 FAAC meeting in Abuja, was buoyed by increases in oil and gas royalty, value-added tax (VAT), and common external tariff (CET) levies, according to a communiqué issued at the end of the meeting.

Out of the N2.225 trillion total distributable revenue, FAAC said N1,478.593 trillion came from statutory revenue, N672.903 billion from VAT, N32.338 billion from the Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL), and N41.284 billion from Exchange Difference.

The communiqué revealed that gross federation revenue for the month stood at N3.635 trillion. From this amount, N124.839 billion was deducted as cost of collection, while N1,285.845 trillion was set aside for transfers, interventions, refunds, and savings.

From the statutory revenue of N1.478 trillion, the Federal Government received N684.462 billion, State Governments received N347.168 billion, and Local Government Councils received N267.652 billion. A further N179.311 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) went to oil-producing states as derivation revenue.

From the distributable VAT revenue of N672.903 billion, the Federal Government received N100.935 billion, the states received N336.452 billion, while the local governments got N235.516 billion.

Of the N32.338 billion shared from EMTL, the Federal Government received N4.851 billion, the States received N16.169 billion, and the Local Governments received N11.318 billion.

From the N41.284 billion exchange difference, the Federal Government received N19.799 billion, the states received N10.042 billion, and the local governments received N7.742 billion, while N3.701 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) was shared to the oil-producing states as derivation.

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KenPoly Governing Council Decries Inadequate Power Supply, Poor Infrastructure On Campus

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The Governing Council of Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic, Bori, has decried the inadequate power supply and poor state of infrastructural facilities and equipment at the institution.

The Council also appealed to the government, including Non-Governmental Organisations, agencies, as well as well-meaning Rivers people to intervene to restore and sustain the laudable gesture, dreams and aspirations of the founding fathers of the polytechnic.

The Chairman of the newly inaugurated Council, Professor Friday B. Sigalo, made this appeal during a tour of facilities at the  Polytechnic, recently.

Accompanied by members of the team, Prof Sigalo emphasised the position of technology, technical and vocational education in sustainable development.

He noted that with the prospects on ground, and the programmes and activities undertaken in the polytechnic, there is no doubt that the institution would add values to the educational system in our society and foster the desired development, if the existing challenges are jointly tackled.

This was contained in a statement signed by Deputy Registrar, Public Relations, Kenpoly,  Innocent Ogbonda-Nwanwu, and made available to The Tide in Port Harcourt.

The chairman who restated the intention of his team of technocrats to ensure that KenPoly enjoys desirable face-lift, said the Council would deliver on its core mandates, accordingly.

Earlier, the Rector, KenPoly Engr. Dr. Ledum S. Gwarah, commended the appointment of Professor Friday B. Sigalo as Chairman of the KenPoly Governing Council.

He described him and his team as seasoned technocrats and expressed confidence in their ability to succeed.

The Rector pledged the management’s support to the Council to ensure that KenPoly resumes its rightful place in the comity of polytechnics in the country.

Facilities visited by the Governing Council include KenPoly workshops, laboratories, skills acquisition centre, library, hostels and medical centre.

 

Chinedu Wosu

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