Heirs Energies has completed its Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) at the Associated Gas Gathering (AGG) facilities in Agbada, near Port Harcourt, Rivers State, and resumed gas supply to the 188-megawatt Geometric Power Plant in Aba, Abia State.
The Managing Director of Geometric Power Ltd (GPAL), Dr Nonso Okolo, confirmed the development in a telephone conversation with journalists yesterday, expressing relief over the restoration of gas supply to the plant.
Okolo said the disruption in gas supply had adversely affected socioeconomic activities in Aba, describing the development as a major concern to both Geometric Power and Aba Power, the electricity distribution company serving the Aba Ring-fenced Area.
According to him, Heirs Energies has commenced the release of gas to the plant, with electricity supply already returning to most parts of the area.
He added that Aba Power was also addressing localised faults on some feeders, expressing optimism that customers across the nine local government areas covered by the Aba Ring-fenced Area would soon return to the reliable electricity supply experienced before the maintenance exercise.
The Aba Ring-fenced Area had enjoyed relatively stable electricity supply over the past two years but recently experienced shortages linked to challenges with ageing gas infrastructure.
An Abuja-based mechanical engineer and power consultant, Dike Ejike, said the situation appeared to be improving following two major developments at Heirs Energies’ facilities.
Ejike disclosed that a critical gas pressure-pumping component, which is no longer in production, had been replaced after the required part was flown in from the United States at considerable cost.
He also identified the completion of the TAM at the AGG facility in Agbada as another major development capable of improving the reliability of gas supply to the Geometric Power Plant.
Meanwhile, a chemical engineer and Chairman of Nigergas Company, Emene, Enugu, Engr Chike Madueke, attributed some of the recent gas supply challenges in the Southeast to ageing pipeline infrastructure.
Madueke noted that several gas pipelines serving the eastern flank of the country were constructed decades ago and required significant investment and rehabilitation.
He further linked the challenges around Aba to years of underinvestment in the infrastructure associated with OML 17 in Owaza, Ukwa West Local Government Area of Abia State, during the prolonged dispute between the Federal Government and the former operator, Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC).
Both Ejike and Madueke commended Heirs Energies for its investment in rehabilitating the region’s gas infrastructure and deploying modern technology and expertise.
Ejike said the indigenous energy company had demonstrated the capacity of Nigerian firms to address complex challenges in the oil and gas sector.
He said the intermittent disruptions should be viewed against the background of the legacy infrastructure inherited by the company, expressing confidence that the recent interventions would help stabilise gas supply and, consequently, electricity generation in Aba.
