The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has assured that the 52-megawatt Maiduguri Emergency Power Project (MEPP) will be fully operational by 2025.
This update was provided during an inspection visit on Saturday, December 14, 2024, by Ekperipe Ekpo, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas). Mele Kyari, the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of NNPC, and Olalekan Ogunleye, the Executive Vice President of Gas, Power & New Energy, accompanied the minister.
On its official X (formerly Twitter) account, NNPC stated that the 32MW Simple Cycle phase of the project has already been completed and is operational, while the remaining 18MW Combined Cycle phase is expected to be fully operational by 2025.
The MEPP, a 52MW Integrated Power Project, was commissioned on March 2, 2023, by former President Muhammadu Buhari. The project is aimed at providing reliable and sustainable electricity to Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, and its surrounding areas.
The need for the project arose due to prolonged power outages in the region over the past nine years, which, according to NNPC, were caused by vandalism and insurgency attacks on power infrastructure. These outages have led to a decline in economic activities within the region.