Governor Chukwuma Soludo has called for private sector investment to develop 1,000 megawatts (MW) of electricity generation capacity in Anambra State, aiming to decouple the state’s economy from the volatile national grid.
The governor declared that the state is now an open market for power investors, asserting that Anambra is ready to provide the necessary environment for Independent Power Producers (IPPs) to establish generation plants.
This move follows the implementation of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) guidelines and the legal framework provided by the 2023 Electricity Act, which grants states the authority to regulate their own electricity markets.
Soludo stated that the drive for 1,000MW is intended to address the chronic power shortages that have historically hampered industrial productivity in the state’s commercial hubs, particularly Onitsha and Nnewi.
The state government believes that by creating a competitive electricity market, it can attract diverse investors who will compete on efficiency and pricing, ultimately reducing the cost of doing business for local manufacturers and SMEs.
For decades, businesses in Anambra have relied heavily on expensive diesel and petrol generators to maintain operations, a factor that Soludo argues has inflated the cost of locally produced goods and deterred foreign direct investment.
The Impact of the 2023 Electricity Act on State Power
The shift toward state-led power generation is made possible by the Electricity Act 2023, which fundamentally altered the structure of the Nigerian power sector. The Act allows states to issue licenses for generation, transmission, and distribution within their boundaries.
Prior to this legislation, the electricity value chain was centrally controlled by the federal government, often leading to bureaucratic delays and a lack of responsiveness to regional industrial needs.
Anambra’s ambition to hit 1,000MW represents one of the most aggressive state-level power targets in Nigeria. The governor’s strategy involves inviting investors to build embedded power projects and mini-grids that can feed directly into industrial clusters.
This approach is designed to bypass the inefficiencies of the national transmission infrastructure, which is prone to frequent collapses and system failures that plunge large portions of the country into darkness.
Industry analysts suggest that the success of this initiative will depend on the state’s ability to negotiate bankable off-take agreements and ensure a transparent tariff structure that protects consumers while remaining attractive to investors.
The state is also expected to coordinate with the World Bank or similar multilateral agencies to provide guarantees or technical assistance for these large-scale infrastructure projects.
Beyond industrial growth, the 1,000MW target is expected to stimulate the local labour market by creating thousands of technical and administrative jobs during the construction and operational phases of the power plants.
The Anambra state government is now tasked with establishing a state-level regulatory body to oversee the licensing and monitoring of these new power assets.
The next critical step for the administration will be the publication of specific investment frameworks and the hosting of investor forums to match potential power developers with available sites and industrial demands within the state.
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