Dangote Industries Limited, Nigeria’s leading indigenous manufacturing company, says it has concluded plans to build a power generation plant that will be capable of producing 500 megawatt electricity in the commercial city of Kano.
The company disclosed that in the next few weeks, it would be signing the final memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Kano State government, as a step towards the official groundbreaking ceremony of the project.
Mansur Ahmed, who is an executive director in charge of stakeholders’ management and corporate communication of the company, gave this hint in his address at the ‘Dangote Special Day’ at the ongoing 36th Kano International Trade fair, weekend.
Ahmed, who represented Aliko Dangote, president of the company, at the special day, noted that the decision by the company to invest in the construction of the power generation plant was borne out of the need to support the socio-economic of the country.
He said when the project was completed it would supplement the existing power supply from the national grid, which had remained grossly insufficient to power national development.
“The resolve of the Dangote Group to invest in power generation is a move to help address the challenge of electricity outages that has being having crippling effect on industrial activities in country, particularly in Kano, and its environs.
“The company choice to site the project in Kano, as a way to resuscitate manufacturing, and other productive operations that is on the verge of completes extinction as a result of electricity outages.
“As you know over the past two decades Kano community has suffered tremendously because of this problem that why the Dangote Group, and it partnership aboard are embarking on the project.
“The power plant is going to generate about 500 megawatt that will serve Kano and it neighbouring states of Jigawa, Katsina, and some parts of Kaduna,” he said.
Ahmed said his company is fully committed to the project, as arrangement is in full gear to sign all paper document with the Kano State government that ensure full take off of the project.
Similarly, the executive director disclosed that the company had expended about N2 billion so far in the execution of projects under it corporate social responsibility’s component.
He revealed that the company was focusing principally on health care delivery, and education, the two areas it believe the citizens required more support.
“In regard to health the company in the next two weeks will be commissioning seven of the 11 Primary Health Care Centres it is building across the state, and also the company will be mobilizing the contractor working at Murtala Mohammed Specialist Hospital Theatre back to site.
“In the same vein, we have also being building borehole, so far we have build over 200 bore holes in various rural areas in some of the Local Government Areas in the state,” he disclosed.
Ahmed said the company also expended N1 billion to support government intervention during the outbreak of Ebola disease, recently, and charge Nigerians to continue to support the company by patronising it products.
Adeola Ajakaiye
