Geometric Power Plant Resumes Full Operations, Plans 10-Hour Reduction for Pipeline Repairs on Wednesday
Electricity supply to the Aba Ringfence, covering nine of the 17 local government areas in Abia State, resumed fully this afternoon following a 40% decline over the weekend. The drop was due to an attack on the oil pipelines supplying gas to the 188-megawatt Geometric Power Plant.
The Aba Power Managing Director, Ugo Opiegbe, explained the situation, stating, “Heirs Energies, the operator of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPL)–Heirs Energies Joint Venture on the Oil Mining Licence (OML) 17, worked extremely hard to restore gas supplies.” He added, “The emergency repair of the damaged portion of the pipeline enabled the restoration of gas supplies.”
Opiegbe, however, disclosed, “There will be a planned reduction in power supply for 10 hours tomorrow (Wednesday) to facilitate further emergency repairs on the oil pipeline. This reduction is necessary due to a scheduled decrease in gas pressure.”
Engr. Vincent Ogbonna Chukwueke, a gas consultant and former senior manager with The Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), provided further insight, explaining, “The gas reduction owes to the discovery of an illegal connection on the operated TransNiger Gas Pipeline (TNP) that stretches from Egbema in Imo State through Rivers State and terminates at Bonny Terminal.” He clarified, “When the oil pipelines are put out of operation due to such interference, liquids that come out during gas processing and are normally evacuated through the oil pipeline get stranded, leading to the shutdown of the gas facilities.”
Chukwueke emphasized the frequency of such incidents, stating, “It is common for thieves searching for crude oil and petroleum products to break pipelines in oil-bearing areas because crude oil and gas pipelines are laid side by side, making it difficult for the vandals to differentiate them.”
Expressing optimism about the repairs, Chukwueke said, “The scheduled reduction in power supply to parts of the Aba Ringfence tomorrow may not last up to 10 hours because of the insistence by the Geometric Power Group that all the parties involved in the repairs do everything humanly possible to provide the Aba people with electricity, after four days of reduced electricity supply which made customers unhappy, having enjoyed 31 days of uninterrupted power supply.”
The Aba community, which had been celebrating one month of uninterrupted electricity, faced a sudden drastic decline in gas pressure, forcing the Geometric Power Plant to shut down its General Electric (GE) turbines. “The community was caught off guard by the announcement, which disrupted their steady power supply,” Chukwueke noted. GMTNewsng
