NIGERIA’S ELECTRICITY SANCTIONS ON NIGER : IN WHOSE INTEREST?

Niger One Of The World’s Least Developed Nations, Is Populated Roughly By An Approximate , 25million People.

Described As A Unitary State, Niger Has Occupied Strategic Headlines In Major News Networks Across The World, Following Recent Military Coup That Ousted Former President, Mohammed Bazoum.

With Recent Sanctions By The Economic Countries Of West African States, ECOWAS, Against The Military Junta, A Strategy Adopted By The Regional Body To Force The Junta To Relinquish Power, And Restate For President Bazoum, The Chances Of ECOWAS Succeeding In This Regard, Appears Quite Slim, As All Attempts By The Regional Body Have Fallen On The Deaf Hears, Of The General Abdourahmane Tchiani Led Military junta.

Amidst Collective Sanctions By ECOWAS On Niger, The Country Bordered By Libya In The Northeast, Benin And Burkina Faso In The Southwest, What Appears To Be The Most Challenging For The Troubled Country Right Now, Is Perhaps, The Electricity Supply Suspension By The Nigerian Government.

Statistics Show That, Niger Is Largely Dependent On The Electricity Supply From Nigeria, Recent Figures Shows That, 70% Of Electricity That Sustain Businesses, And Other Aspects Of Daily Routines Is Sourced From Nigeria, An Indication Which Clearly Shows How Critical, Nigeria Is, In That Country’s Foreign Policy, Reasons Why Urgent Steps Has To Be Taken According To Analysts To Restore Normalcy To The Two Countries Bilateral Relations.

Though Some Have Applauded The Nigerian Government’s Suspension Of Electricity Supply To Niger, If That’s The Only Way To Get The Junta To Back down, Some On The Other Hand, Like Public Affairs Analyst, Clement Okafor, A Nigerian Based In The Republic Of Ireland, United Kingdom, Who Has Been Following Developments In Niger Closely, In An Interview Granted Energy News Stream, Said

“Tinubu’s Action Is Not Only Senseless, But A Violation Of The Agreement Reached Before We Started Supplying Them Electricity”

Okafor While Noting That The Supply Of Electricity To Niger Were Backed By Some Kind Of Contractual Agreements Between Both Countries, Decried The Decision Reached By The Nigerian Government On The Electricity Suspension, Which He Said Was Taken By The Tinubu’s Led Federal Government To Satisfy Western Interests.

In The Face Of Divergent Views On The Subject, As It Relates To The Electricity Supply Suspension By The Nigerian Authority, And The Impact Of That Action On The Nigerien Economy, Many Are Already Asking, If The Development, Will Not Force The Military Junta In Niger, To Look Inward, And Revisit The Timely Completion Of The Long Abandoned Kandadji Hydroelectric Dam Project, And If That Happens, Who Will Be The Loser In The Long Run, As Public Policy Analysts Have Argued, That The Completion Of The Kandadji Hydroelectric Dam In Niger, Will Ultimately Lead To Huge Loss In Foreign Exchange Revenue For Nigeria, Which Before Now, Is The Revenue Earned From The Sale Of Electricity To That Country.

The Kandadji Hydroelectric Dam Though Uncompleted For Now, Is Located 180km Northwest Of Niamey, The Completion Deadline, Was Originally Fixed For 2015, But That Didn’t Happen Due To Delays, By The Russian Contractors Who Previously Handled The Project, Before The Contract Was Terminated By Former President, Mahammadou Issoufou, The Contract Was Subsequently Awarded To A New Chinese Contractor, With Ongoing Work At It’s Advanced Stage Of Completion, Days Before The Military junta Seized Power From Former President Bazoum

The Dam Calculated To Be 280M High, With A Length Of 8,780M, And A Reservoir Of 282 Hectares, According To Reports Has An Estimated 280.5MW Hydroelectric Capacity Potential.

In A Country With Two Electricity Operators, National Electricity Company, And The Coal Company Arion Araren, The Kandadji Dam If Completed Under The Present Electricity Sanctions, May Just Be The Needed Step Required To Finally Free Niger From Years Of Electricity Dependence On The Nigerian State, And The Beginning Of Revenue Loss From The Sale Of That Source Of Energy By Nigeria.