The federal government is set to revive the Aluminium Company of Nigeria (ALSCON), Ikot Abasi, Akwa Ibom State, by ensuring its connection to the national electricity grid.
Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, made this commitment during a working visit to the company, where he lamented that 37 years after its establishment, lack of alternative electricity supply has hindered the country from benefiting from the huge investment.
“These huge investments by the country have suffered from lack of power supply in the last 27 years, as they have not been connected to the grid, and we are very much aware of the huge potential of an institution like this in the upstream, midstream and downstream conversion of aluminium,” Adelabu stated.
“They can create a lot of employment for our teeming youths, serve as a supplier of raw materials to every downstream aluminium company and save us huge foreign exchange for imports of these raw materials,” he added.
The Minister promised a temporary solution to connect the company to the grid while work on a long-term solution continues. He also addressed the long-abandoned Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC)-owned 330KVA substation in the community, which was about 90 per cent completed when it was abandoned.
“I have come to visit the company to discuss with the owners of the company, and all the other stakeholders… to devise an immediate solution to solve the power problem this company has been facing,” Adelabu said. “I am happy that we made very good progress with this meeting. We have determined what the short-term solution is to connect this company, this institution to the national grid.”
“But the most important part of this meeting is the fact that the company also has the potential of supplying 540 MW of power onto the national grid when fully completed,” the Minister stated.
According to him, the plant has an installed capacity of 540 MW, comprising six turbines of 90 MW each, which are still in very good condition.
“Once all the infrastructure are put in place, the 330/132KV substation… together with the 330kv DC lines from Ikot- Ekpene to Ikot-Abasi, we will be able to evacuate the entire of this 540 MW to the national grid”, he said.
Adelabu reiterated that the revival of the idle plant is crucial for the economy. “This will save us millions of dollars from foreign exchange. We know the impact of this on our nation, on our Federal Reserve, and the impact of this on our Gross Domestic Product, (GDP). So, it’s a company that we believe is going to add a lot to the fortune and prosperity of the country, and of the people of Nigeria,” he added.
When fully operational, the government said the plant will add 540 megawatts of electricity to the grid, while providing direct and indirect employment opportunities for about 15,000 Nigerian professionals and the youth population.
Earlier, Viacheslav Krylov, Development Advisor, had spoken on the challenges in ALSCON which had hampered operation since the presidential directives in July 2024 to restart operations.
He noted that smelting is a power-intensive process requiring continuous, stable and high-volume supply of electricity to operate efficiently and effectively, adding that the plant has a total capacity of 540MW, out of which 360MW would be available at peak operation.
“The current energy options at the plant are therefore completely inadequate to restart the plant”, he said.
He therefore appealed for an enhanced grid stability, dedicated back up power and the exploration of strategic power purchase agreements to ensure the plant’s long-term operational and financial stability.
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