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•Vandals blamed for gas pipeline attack
After an uninterrupted power supply for 31 days, residents of the Aba Ringfence, covering nine of the 17 local government areas (LGAs) in Abia State, experienced their first power outage this weekend.
The Managing Director of Aba Power, Ugo Opiegbe, confirmed the disruption, offering an apology to affected customers. “We are sorry we lost supplies from Heirs Energies, working in partnership with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
“We deeply apologise to our numerous customers who have been enjoying ceaseless supplies since December 17, the first set of electricity consumers to enjoy such service in Nigeria in several years”, Opiegbe said in a telephone interview with journalists.
While Opiegbe did not specify the reason behind the gas supply interruption from Heirs Energies, which operates the Oil Mining Licence (OLM) 17 at Owaza in Ukwa West LGA, reliable sources have indicated that vandals attacked the Eastern Gas Network over the weekend. “Vandals, searching for crude oil and petroleum products to steal, attacked the Eastern Gas Network this weekend,” a source revealed. The pipelines, often laid together, complicate the distinction between gas and oil lines, making them vulnerable to such attacks.
The rising trend of attacks on critical public infrastructure, including telecommunications, electricity, and petroleum facilities, has been a growing concern in Nigeria.
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Despite the gas supply loss, Opiegbe assured that some areas in the Aba Ringfence were still receiving power.
“We quickly switched to the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) for a quick fix because we don’t want our cherished customers, who have been expressing satisfaction with our service since December, to be without power,” he explained.
However, Opiegbe noted that the limited supply from NDPHC meant that not all customers were benefitting. “The problem we are having is that not all of them are benefitting from the NDPHC supplies because the supplies are limited.”
He reassured Aba residents that efforts would continue to restore uninterrupted power across the region. “We will not rest until consumers in all the nine LGAs in our coverage area begin to enjoy uninterrupted electricity once again,” he concluded.
