Grid collapse: Senate, South Korean firm to explore coconut for alternative power

From Adesuwa Tsan, Abuja

As part of efforts to provide solutions to incessant national grid collapse and epileptic power supply, the Senate Committee on Power, yesterday, met with a South Korean energy firm, BK Energy, which has promised a lasting solution using coconuts.

In his remarks, the Chairman of the Committee, Enyinnaya Abaribe (Abia South) told BK Energy that Nigeria needs investment in its power infrastructure as it has been stuck with 4,000 megawatts of electricity generation due to lack of transmission equipment.

He said: “Our major concern as a committee, and by extension, as a people, is how to break the bond and bridge the yawning gap of insufficient power generation in the country. We want you to be very practical in your submission for us to buy into whatever new technology or idea you have brought, which should serve as expected solutions for us.”

BK Energy, represented by Mr Haeagwoo Lee and Sangwoo Park, assured that the power problem could be addressed by construction of a mini-grids across the nation. According to him, coconuts, which are widely grown in the country, would be used to generate power.

He disclosed that South Korea, which has a population of about 50 million people generates 130, 000 megawatts of electricity, which does not get loaded on a single grid alone.

“There is need for decentralisation when it comes to wheeling or transmission of power generation to avoid waste or incessant collapse.

“Nigeria is even a very lucky country where coconut  is largely produced agriculturally, which can be converted to graphene for power generation as done in South Korea. Coconut trees can also be used to build a generating plant in any neighbourhood.”

Chairman and Chief Executive officer of TUG Energy, Mr. Uzo Udemba, who led the South Korean investors to the National Assembly, explained that BK Energy was willing to share its new technology of power generation, transmission and distribution with Nigeria by setting up factories where Nigerians would be trained on generation, transmission and distribution of power.