Tinubu Orders Release Of 300 Electricity Equipment Containers Stranded At Nigerian Ports For 20 Years

President Bola Tinubu has ordered the immediate process of clearing more than 300 containers containing electricity equipment that have been stranded at Nigerian ports for between 14 and 20 years.

The Minister of Power, Olasunkanmi Tegbe, disclosed this on Wednesday after the Federal Executive Council meeting presided over by Tinubu at the State House, Abuja.

Tegbe described the prolonged detention of the equipment as “unacceptable,” explaining that unpaid charges and unresolved customs procedures had kept the containers trapped at the ports for years.

He said Tinubu directed the Ministry of Power to work with the Nigerian Ports Authority and Nigeria Customs Service to settle the outstanding issues and facilitate their release.

According to the minister, technical experts will inspect the equipment once cleared to determine what can still be used. Serviceable materials will be deployed to ongoing power projects, while obsolete items will be appropriately handled.

The directive comes as the Federal Government moves to strengthen Nigeria’s transmission network through the proposed East and West Super Grids, which are expected to raise transmission capacity from about 5,000MW to 19,000MW within two years.

Tegbe also announced approvals for transmission projects in Abuja, Lagos and the Lagos-Shagamu corridor, including new transmission lines and three 300MVA transformers for the Ikeja West Transmission Substation.

On the sector’s financial crisis, Tegbe said the Federal Government had paid ₦1.23 trillion out of ₦3.3 trillion owed to gas suppliers and other stakeholders, noting that the debts had contributed to gas shortages affecting power generation.

Meanwhile, construction has commenced on a new National Control Centre in Osogbo to replace the existing facility, which is 64 years old. The government is also working to energise completed substations in Kano, Katsina, Bauchi and Gombe.

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