Protocol

Your Excellency Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu,

President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Your Excellency Sir, I seek your kind permission, to respectfully recognise ourNational Leaders, and other distinguished men and women that are here to witness the Presidential Groundbreaking of a Milestone Project of your transformative administration.

It is therefore my honour and privilege to welcome Your Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, to this historic event of the Groundbreaking of the 350MW project being the first phase of the planned capacity of 1,350MW Gwagwalada Independent Power Plant (GIPP), and to recognize the presence of:

The Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
Distinguished Senate President
Honourable Speaker of House of Representatives
The State Governors of Niger, Nasarawa, Kogi and Borno states
Senior Government functionaries
Members of the Diplomatic Corps
Distinguished MDs/CEOs/Captains of Industries
Traditional Fathers
Invited Guests
Members of the Press
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen.

I would like to use this occasion to acknowledge the progressive policy direction of this administration to renew hope and reposition the Nigerian economy.

The esteemed presence of Your Excellency at this event is a demonstration of your commitment and support to improve the Nation’s power generation capacity to spur economic growth for our country, and for this, we are indeed grateful.

Nigeria is endowed with significant natural gas resources of over 209TCF of proven gas reserves, and potential reserve of over 600TCF. As a commercial enterprise, NNPC sees this project as an opportunity to monetize our abundant natural gas resources, by Expanding Access to Energy to support economic growth, industrialization, and job creation across the country.

To achieve this national aspiration, NNPC has invested heavily in domestic gas footprint expansion projects through the delivery of the Trans-Nigeria Pipeline Project (TNGP) which includes the Escravos to Lagos Pipeline System (ELPS & ELPS II), the Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben (OB3) gas pipeline and the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) gas pipeline.

Your Excellency Mr. President, this project is a giant step towards achieving NNPC’s Gas & Power mandate to add 5GW into the National Power generation by 2024.

Currently NNPC and partners are delivering about 800MW to the national grid from Afam VI and Okpai Phase 1 thermal power plants with combined installed capacity of 1,100MW.

We have also completed Okpai Phase 2 project that will add up to 320MW of power to the national grid and progressing with other power plant projects across the country including those along the AKK pipeline route.

The Gwagwalada IPP is among the NNPC flagship power projects along the AKK corridor. This is part of the 3,600MW cumulative power capacity which includes Kaduna IPP (900MW) and Kano IPP (1,350MW).

The project will be delivered in collaboration with General Electric (GE) as the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) and China Machinery and Engineering Corporation (CMEC) as the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) Contractor.

Just as we have recently commissioned the 50MW Maiduguri Emergency Power plant (MEPP), NNPC will continue to replicate similar viable business opportunities across the Nation to ensure energy affordability.

For this worthy cause, NNPC wishes to appreciate the collaboration and support of stakeholders including the Ministry of Power, other relevant Agencies such as the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading PLC (NBET), the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) and the Gwagwalada host community.

We know that expanding access to energy will change the game. It will create a better investment climate and promote economic growth, a win-win situation for the Nation and for NNPC as a commercial energy company.

Your Excellency Mr. President, we want to re-assure you that NNPC Ltd, as an energy company of choice, is committed to alleviating energy poverty and enhancing socio-economic development of our great Nation.

May I your Excellency recall your resonating statement that: ”We are not here to do what is comfortable. We are here to do what is right for our people and our country. We are here to answer to a greater, higher calling. That calling is the love of Nigeria”. Your focus on ensuring energy sufficiency and security in our country will propel greater prosperity and bountiful livelihood for our country men and women who have earnestly been assured of renewed hope by Your Excellency. This indeed is a manifestly high calling and a demonstration of love for our country.

Once again, I thank Mr. President for the visionary leadership, encouragement, and support. NNPC and the Nigerian Petroleum Industry will remain eternally grateful to you Mr. President.

Thank you.

Mele K. Kyari
GCEO, NNPC Limited
4^th August 2023