Edo govt to generate electricity from coal
To boost electricity supply to residents, Edo State Government has granted licence to Chinese firms to begin exploration with a view to generating electricity from coal deposits. The companies are
- From Osagie Otabor, Benin
To boost electricity supply to residents, Edo State Government has granted licence to Chinese firms to begin exploration with a view to generating electricity from coal deposits.
The companies are also to begin cement production as well as produce ceramic tiles from clay.
Commissioner for Mining, Andrew Ijegbai, who made this known in an interview, said Governor Monday Okpebholo had ordered the Ministry of Mining to carry out exploration of minerals across the state.
Ijegbai hoped revenue from the ministry in future would be enough to run the state.
He said feasibility study would show how much megawatts of electricity would be generated from coal.
The commissioner said Governor Okpebholo had curtailed activities of illegal miners, adding that five illegal mining groups had been arraigned.
He said: “Okpebholo has released a lot of money for us to do explorations and discover the minerals we have. We have two Chinese companies that have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to embark on cement production. The governor just signed this about a month ago. They will start operation very soon.
“We cannot quantify the potential of Edo solid minerals. Imagine the contract agreement we signed with the Chinese firms to begin cement production. It will generate a lot of money. They will involve in quarry, they will use our coal to generate electricity and use our clay to produce tiles. It is a four-in-one project. It’s going to generate lots of income. By the time it kicks off, it will create lots of jobs.
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“People mining in Edo these days are required to get necessary documentation. Before now, people just obtained licence from the Federal Government without the consent of the communities. They go into the bush and start mining and they will tell you they have licence. But these days, we ensure miners obtain the consent of the community, who is the property owner.
“We want to start ‘Operation Community Development Agreement (CDA)’. We have received petitions with regards to miners that refuse to honour ‘Operation CDA’. We will stop the miners. We cannot fold our arms and watch our people being short-changed.”
