Yemisi Izuora
Reports have shown that the combined performance of all the privatised thermal power generating stations in the country was less than 30 per cent in the third quarter of 2016.
But operators had laid blame of the bad performance to the recurrent vandalism of pipelines that supply gas to the facilities.
Available data revealed that the contributions of the privatised thermal plants to the national electricity grid in July, August and September were 27.42 per cent, 28.25 per cent and 29.22 per cent, respectively.
Their combined average electricity delivery to the grid in the third quarter of this year was 28.29 per cent, regardless of the fact that they were being managed by private entities since their official handing over to investors in November 2013.
A further analysis of the industry showed that the hydro power generating stations contributed more to the country’s electricity grid in the period under review, as they supplied 34.25 per cent of the electricity.
The National Integrated Power Plants contributed 13.42 per cent of electricity to the grid during the three-month period, while the independent power producers supplied 24.05 per cent of electricity in the third quarter.