Egbin Power Plant in Ikorodu, Lagos, the biggest generating power station in Nigeria, has shut operations, leading to a drop from its 1,100 megawatts to zero.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that its generation drooped since Saturday.
A senior management staff of the station told NAN anonymously that the cause was due to an alleged sabotage by one of the former employees of the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria.
The source told NAN that the former staff threw an object into the power plant and it tripped off.
The management of Egbin Power Plc had said in a statement on Tuesday that the operations of the plant were being threatened by the activities of illegal occupants.
The statement said that huge investments and continuing upgrade following the plant’s privatisation on Nov. 1, 2013 had since shored its generation capacity to over 1,100 megawatts.
According to the statement, the illegal occupants who have refused to leave the plant’s Housing Estate since Nov. 1, 2013 are set to make good their threat to sabotage Egbin’s operations.
“This unfortunate development portends grave danger that is capable of decimating recent progress in the power sector.
“Already, outcome from investigations into some criminal activities at the Housing Estate have been linked to these illegal residents and their collaborators.
“It is instructive to note that management has declared Amber Security Alert on the plant as a proactive step to protect lives and property.
“We also consider it imperative to stress that given the status of Egbin in the nation’s power sector, the activities of these illegal occupants constitute a threat to national security, it requires urgent intervention”, it added.
The management, therefore, appealed to the employees to remain calm as they go about their normal activities without any inhibition.
However, Mr Godwin Idemudia, Head, Media Communications Strategies of Eko Electricity Distribution Company, told NAN that non-generation of power by Egbin since Saturday had affected their operations.
Idemudia disclosed that only 40 megawatts had so far been received through Ikeja West transmission station which was distributed according to customer’s at Alagbon, Ajah and Lekki axis.
He said that the drop had seriously affected the operations and revenue generation of the Disco.
Idemudia appealed to customers within the company’s network to bear with it pending when the energy it receives from Egbin and national grid improved to serve customers better. (NAN)
