Nigeria’s power supply dropped again to 2500mw yesterday and may drop even further as oil giant Shell, the major gas supplying company in the country, has given the Power and Petroleum Resources Ministries up to this weekend to evacuate the stock of wet condensate currently at the Warri Refinery or risk the shutting down of Shell’s two gas plants located in Delta State.
The Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) had announced a drop in Nigeria’s power generation to 2700MW from the 3700MW that was obtainable in December last year. Sources at both (PHCN) and the Power Ministry confirmed the drop in power supply to 2500mw but wouldn’t want their names in print.
The volume of wet condensate at the Warri Refinery, which Shell wants evacuated, is currently put at about 472,000 barrels. Daily Trust gathered that in letters separately addressed to the Power Minister, Lanre Babalola and that of Petroleum Resources, Rilwanu Lukman, the management of Shell warned that if the Warri Refinery fails to evacuate at least 100,000 barrels of wet condensate by February 20, further supply of dry condensate would not be guaranteed. It is only by so doing that the gas plants at Oben and Sapele which are currently shut down would be reopened, Shell stated in the letters addressed to the two Ministers.
Daily Trust findings show that there may be further drop in power generation in the country as a result of the degeneration in gas supply from the six sources of gas supply in the country, namely Chevron-1, Chevron-2, Sapele gas plant, Ugheli gas plant as well as the ones located at Oben and Utorogu.
For instance, it was gathered that although 185million standard cubic feet (mscfd) of gas per day is expected from Chevron Escravos-1, nothing is currently forthcoming from there. Similarly, the Chevron Escravos-2 gas plant is expected to supply 1300mscfd per day but is currently supplying nothing while the Sapele gas plant which has the capacity to supply 50million mscfd is also currently undersupplying.