Ikere Gorge Dam Concession To Create 10,000 Jobs - Power Minister

By Tony Enokela

Federal Government has expressed optimism that the concession of the Ikere hydropower plant in Iseyin Local Government Area of Oyo State will generate over 10,000 direct and indirect jobs, while boosting power supply by six megawatts to the state and neighbouring states.

Minister of Power, Bayo Adelabu, expressed this at the handover of the 6MW hydropower project to Quaint Power and Infrastructure Nigeria Limited in the Ikere community, Iseyin Local Government Area, on Friday.

He said the development aligns with the policies of the President Bola Tinubu-led administration to revitalise the energy sector and create employment opportunities for Nigerians.

Ikere Gorge Dam, which is a major earth-fill dam located on the Ogun River near Iseyin in Oyo State, was initiated in the 1980s and designed for hydropower generation, water supply and irrigation.

The project was executed under the regulatory guidance of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission, the Federal agency statutorily responsible for regulating all public-private partnerships.

Despite its potential, the facility has historically suffered neglect and underutilisation.

Adelabu said the project would stimulate electricity market development and enhance economic growth in the host community.

The minister said, “The Ikere Gorge Dam project is more than a hydropower concession; it is a strategic intervention that underscores the Federal Government’s unwavering commitment under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Tinubu to advance energy access, stimulate electricity market development, deepen power sector reforms, attract private investment and unlock the country’s vast renewable energy potential.

“The project will also generate over 10,000 direct and indirect jobs, while boosting power supply by six megawatts in the state and neighbouring states.”

He added that the handover, which is a public-private partnership, had added to the growing list of achievements of the administration’s economic reform policies.

Adelabu listed the achievements to include the decentralisation and liberalisation of the power sector, which resulted in the activation of 15 state electricity markets following the signing of the Electricity Act 2023 into law.

He also cited the development of a National Integrated Electricity Policy after 24 years, as well as the attraction of over $2bn in fresh investments to expand electricity access nationwide.

According to him, the commencement of the transition process towards full commercialisation increased sector revenue by 70 per cent in 2024 and reduced government liability by N70bn.

He added that the present administration had mobilised N700bn funding from the Federation Account Allocation Committee to implement the Presidential Metering Initiative aimed at addressing the sector’s long-standing metering gap.

In his address, the Minister of Water Resources, Prof Joseph Terlumun Utsev, reiterated the commitment of the administration to optimising dams nationwide for power generation, agricultural development and job creation.

He said the success recorded at the Ikere Gorge hydropower plant was a product of collaboration between the two ministries to strengthen Nigeria’s hydropower infrastructure.

Earlier, the Director-General of the ICRC, Dr Jobson Oseodion Ewalefoh, described the handover of the project as a defining moment in Nigeria’s infrastructure journey, noting that it reflected a deliberate effort to convert long-dormant public assets into productive drivers of national development through public-private partnerships.

Ewalefoh said the revival of the project demonstrated the Federal Government’s resolve to move beyond abandoned infrastructure and deliver tangible outcomes for citizens, particularly in the power and water sectors.

He noted that the project aligns with the broader reform agenda of President Tinubu, which prioritises infrastructure delivery, private sector participation and sustainable solutions capable of unlocking economic growth at the sub-national level.

On his part, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Ogun-Osun River Basin Development Authority, Adedeji Ashiru, said the occasion marked the beginning of a new era in sustainable energy generation from the Ikere hydropower plant, which had been abandoned for decades.

In his remarks, the Managing Director of Quaint Power and Infrastructure Nigeria Limited, Mobolaji Durodola, said the concession would stimulate development in the host community, create employment opportunities and contribute significantly to national economic growth.