KEDCO targets 24-hour power supply, set to commission $2m project
The Kano Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO) is set to attain 24-hour electricity supply within its franchise states of Kano, Katsina and Jigawa as the company’s new core investors roll-out an ambitious plan to build up to 200MW of incremental capacity through 100 mini-grids and embedded generation.
This was made known by the company’s board chairman, Engr. Adamu Ibrahim Gumel during a tour to one of the mini-grids sites at Zawaciki area in Kumbotso LGA in Kano State, recently.
Engr. Gumel stated that, “very soon, you will see these interconnected mini grids popping up everywhere within our network across Kano, Katsina, and Jigawa States, to augment electricity supply to our valued customers, while we prioritize bulk grid supply to industrial customers.”
The KEDCO chairman, also added that, “we are equally looking at some of our key industrial clusters such as Tokarawa and Sharada for 24-hour supply through embedded generation, in line with our vision to enable re-industrialisation and economic empowerment of Kano and environs through improving the reliability and quality of power supply.”
The Zawaciki power plant, which is the first of many to follow, was co-funded by members of KEDCO’s Core Investor Consortium, the World Bank (through the Nigerian Electrification Project with the Rural Electrification Agency) and the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet.
The $2 million Interconnected mini-grid (the largest of its kind in Nigeria) includes – a 1MW interconnected solar-diesel hybrid solar plant; low voltage network revamp and rehabilitation; and metering for 2000+ consumers, he hinted.
Also speaking at the site, a representative from the new Core Investor Future Energies Africa and director on the Board of KEDCO, Mr Habib Daura stated that, “we are in serious discussions with the institutional investors and the Governments of Kano, Katsina and Jigawa to re-capitalise and re-position this entity to be the best performing DISCO in the country.”
The new core Investors have signaled the intent to make Kano DISCO the first ‘Green DISCO in Africa’ through the usage of Embedded Solar Hybrid Power Plants, mini-grids, Energy Storage Systems (ESS) and Power Purchase Agreements with Generators with Clean Energy such as nearby hydro-power plants.
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The Zawaciki power plant was built by developer Bagaja Renewables with the construction executed by a consortium led by EMOne with Diginet and Digitbit. KEDCO said it plans to execute more mini-grids with a suite of Developers and EPC’s led by those that executed the Zawaciki project so as to speed up execution of the project to build out 100 interconnected mini-grids in an accelerated time-frame.
The Zawaciki community is very excited about the development. At a recent Friday Sermon, the Imam at Zawaciki Mosque (speaking in Hausa) mentioned that “we should pray for the success of this development, I have never experienced this much constant and uninterrupted power supply.”
