MESL, operator of Kainji, Jebba hydropower plants, increases portfolio with takeover of Zungeru plant
Oredola Adeola
Mainstream Energy Solutions Limited (MESL) has increased its portfolio having emerged as the preferred bidder for the concession of the Zungeru Hydroelectric Power Plant, located in Niger State, at a fee of $USD70,000.25 per year for a period thirty (30) years.
This was revealed in a statement by Laolu Akande, the media aide of the vice president, Senior Special Assistant, Media & Publicity to the Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo.
Akande in the statement said that the National Council on Privatization (NCP) approved the selection of Mainstream Energy Solutions Limited as preferred bidder for the concession of the new 700MW Zungeru Hydroelectric Power Plant, upon the recommendation of Bureau Public Enterprise (BPE),
According to him, the NCP, chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, with members drawn from the public and private sectors, in its second meeting in 2023 held on Tuesday, approved the commencement of the process of negotiations and the execution of the concession agreement of Zungeru Hydroelectric Power Plant with Mainstream Energy Solutions Limited.
Akande said that during the Council’s meeting Mr. Alex Okoh, Director General of the Bureau for Private Enterprises (BPE), presented a memo seeking the Council’s approval of Mainstream Energy Solutions Limited as the preferred bidder in the concession of the Zungeru HydroElectric Power Plant.
He said, Mainstream Energy Solutions Limited was chosen among 11 other companies after a technical evaluation of the bids by the Bureau and other stakeholders.
EnergyDay gathered that MESL got 1142 marks (94.3%) of the total 1,200 marks, thus surpassing the minimum benchmark score of 75% of 1,200 marks, having offered the highest concession fee of $USD70,000.25 to beat Africa Plus Partners Nigeria Limited Consortium (APPNLC) which scored 742 points.
Recall that the company was one of the 11 firms submitted bids, after the conclusion of the Requests for Qualifications (RfQ) for the concession of the power plant. Thereafter three(3) of the 11 firms – Africa Plus Partners Nigeria Limited Consortium (APPNLC), Mainstream Energy Solutions Limited (MESL and North-South Power Consortium (NSP) were prequalified. After deliberations by the Council members on Tuesday, they approved BPE’s recommendations.
Having been shortlisted as the successful concessionaire of Nigeria’s second biggest hydropower plant, in Zungeru, Mainstream Energy Solutions Limited, with its technical and financial capabilities, is expected to operate, maintain and manage the facility for a minimum of thirty years.
EnergyDay gathered that the Nigerian Government’s strategic objective for the Zungeru Hydroelectric Power Plant, is the need for increased electricity generation from diverse sources, particularly, from the hydroelectric potentials replete in Niger state.
The plant comprises a reservoir with a 230-meter elevation, a powerhouse containing four 175 MW turbines/generating units for a 700MW total rated output concrete-faced rockfill dam with a maximum height of approximately 113m, a concrete spillway equipped with four radial gates designed to pass Probable Maximum Flood (PMF).
MESL, is Nigeria’s largest hydropower generation company, the concessionaire in charge of two hydropower plants, Jebba and Kainji dams, which currently generate about 20% of Nigeria’s power.
Its takeover of Zungeru Plant, the second largest hydroelectric power station in the country, has therefore increased its stake in the country’s power sector.
Kainji, Jebba, and Zungeru hydropower plants acquisition by MESL, has therefore increased the operator’s combined installed generation capacity to 2,038.4 MW.
