ABUJA — Industries in the Idu Industrial Area of Abuja are set to enjoy 24-hour electricity supply under a new 50-megawatt electrification project launched by the Federal Government.
The project had its groundbreaking on Thursday in Abuja and is designed to provide dedicated, uninterrupted power to manufacturers and businesses in the estate.
The initiative is a collaborative venture between Welbeck Electricity Distribution Limited, the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company, AEDC, and Shell Gas Limited.
The Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, said the Idu project is part of a broader drive to provide reliable electricity to industrial clusters nationwide.
According to Tegbe, the Federal Government is conducting comprehensive technical audits across major industrial corridors, prioritising the Lagos industrial axis, the Abuja-Kaduna corridor and the Enugu-Onitsha axis.
He said the first phase of the Idu project is expected to deliver 10MW by December 2026, while the remaining 40MW will be rolled out through 2027.
Tegbe noted that the Lagos industrial corridor accounts for approximately 40 percent of national electricity demand, adding that government interventions in the zone aim to create or secure around 180,000 jobs over the next six months.
“Our target is that within six months we will fix the issues in the Lagos/Sagamu corridor regarding infrastructure and then move on to Abuja and then the Enugu-Onitsha axis,” Tegbe declared.
“We need to ensure the transmission happens. And then even distribution. I am sure Abuja Disco is represented here, because if you want to effectively distribute to the industrial end users, there must be a handshake,” he said.
The Minister of State for Industry, John Owan Enoh, said the initiative forms part of the government’s broader industrialisation strategy aimed at reducing production costs, expanding local manufacturing and creating jobs.
Speaking at the ceremony, Enoh said unreliable electricity remained a major constraint on industrial productivity and that efforts to renew the manufacturing sector would be difficult without addressing Nigeria’s energy deficit.
He said the government’s industrial strategy was focused on local production, value addition, economic diversification and stronger integration of Nigerian businesses into global markets.
“When you produce locally, you contribute to job creation. For our abundant youth, you provide for them a pathway for employment,” Enoh said.
He added that higher domestic production would reduce reliance on imported goods, conserve foreign exchange and strengthen the economy against external disruptions.
He described the Abuja project as a practical model that could be replicated across industrial clusters nationwide, noting that dependable electricity could enable factories to increase production, expand operations and hire more workers.
“Industrial renewal is not a sprint. It is a marathon,” Enoh said.
