‘Plateau’s 2,000mw hydro-power project to start soon’

Category: News Published on Wednesday, 20 February 2013 05:00

A lot has been done by both the Plateau State government and an Ukrainian company to build two hydro-power stations with total capacity of 2,000 megawatts in Bokkos Local Government Area of the state, and work on the stations should begin soon, management committee chairmen of the local government council, Zakka Akos, has said.

“Officials of the company have identified two locations within Bokkos Local Government Area; one in Kamwai, the other in Horom,” Akos said in an interview with Daily Trust, adding, “they have come and have taken what they need for testing, and they are satisfied and are coming to start developing the power stations soon.”

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed in April last year between the Plateau State government and an Ukrainian building firm, Stroy-Alyans Construction Company, for the construction of the hydro-power stations.

Akos added; “It is not directly an initiative of Bokkos Local Government Area, but a collaboration between the state government and the Ukrainian firm. They have signed an agreement with the state government and as the local government hosting them, we have also signed an agreement for the provision of the project sites and where they will build their headquarters, staff quarters, and so on.”

He said the Ukrainians will build and run the stations for some time before handing them over.

“It’s a big project that will attract national interest because they will be producing 2,000 megawatts, which Plateau State alone can’t use, so we will be adding something substantial to the national grid,” he said.