Firms Seal Power Plants Maintenance Deal

Firms Seal Power Plants Maintenance Deal

By Peter Uzoho

Technology group, Wärtsilä, has signed a five-year long-term optimised maintenance agreement with Paras Energy, covering power plants in three locations owned by the later, a 100-percent privately-owned Nigerian energy provider.

The aim of the agreement signed recently, was to ensure the plants’ continued high levels of availability, reliability and efficiency, while providing important cost predictability for future budgeting purposes.

A statement announcing the deal stated that the plants covered by the five-year agreement are operated with Wärtsilä 34SG gas-fuelled engines producing a combined total output of approximately 132MW.

According to the statement made available to THISDAY, based on an average connected capacity of some 6,5 kW for each Nigerian home, this will represent the annual consumption equivalent of close to 20,300 domestic households.

“We have worked successfully with Wärtsilä for twelve years, during which time, we have developed a strong spirit of mutual respect and trust.

“Until now, we have managed and maintained these plants ourselves, but as we grow and expand our operations, we are convinced that Wärtsilä’s professional approach will provide the support needed as we develop our core business,” , Managing Director, Paras Energy and Natural Resources Limited, Yashwant Kumar, said.

Also commenting on the deal, the Vice President, Africa and Europe, Wärtsilä Energy, Björn Ullbro, said: “This tailored agreement will strengthen our long-standing partnership with Paras Energy. It is another example of marrying our world-class expertise and experience with state-of-the art digital technology to create unparalleled customer value.

“We are excited and honoured to take this step with an energy thought leader like Paras Energy.”
Paras Energy is a privately-owned independent energy supplier connected to Nigeria’s national grid. Availability of the generating assets is, therefore, a key necessity and was a notable factor in the decision to sign the Optimised Maintenance agreement with Wärtsilä.

The agreement has been specifically tailored to meet the needs and growth ambitions of the customer.

In 2009, Paras Energy decided to benefit from the advantages offered by the Wärtsilä gas engines rather than using gas turbine technology, which was at the time, standard in Nigeria.

Today, this is well in line with the federal government’s integrated energy mix targets. The Nigerian Sustainable Energy for All (SE4ALL) action agenda in the 30:30:30 vision document outlined a target of generating 30GW of power by 2030, with 30 percent from renewable energy sources.

Related Articles