THE proposed establishment of the Delta State Electricity Commission by the Governor Sheriff Oborevwori administration leaves no one in doubt that the government has taken full responsibility to revolutionize the electricity industry in the state. These accords with the Delta State Electricity Act 2024 that domesticated the Nigeria Electricity Act 2023. The federal law moved electricity from the exclusive list to the concurrent list, giving states, corporations and individuals the opportunity to create and manage their own electricity systems.
Coming barely three months after the governor assented to the bill in April 2025, the commission is mandated to regulate the electricity industry in the state. Multiple investors are being invited to take advantage of the solid foundation laid by the government to establish mini-electricity systems or mini-grids in different parts of the state to profitably maximize the efficiency of the industry. The Commissioner for Economic Planning, Mr. Sonny Ekedayen, who broke the news after an Executive Council meeting in Asaba, further disclosed that the independent power system in the state will be private sector-driven.
The role of government, he said, will be limited to “set the rules, ensure fairness, and create the atmosphere for investment and innovation to thrive,” while “a consultant would be appointed to help midwife the electricity transition process, providing expert guidance, and assisting in the creation of a robust implementation roadmap.”
We applaud the Oborevwori administration for the grand initiative. This has been the expectation of the people across the three senatorial districts of the oil-rich and gas-bearing state. The speed with which the energy reform is unfolding is an indication of the government’s commitment to accelerate the pace of industrialization of the state. The Commissioner gave more insight on the mini-grid option: “The approach differs significantly from the conventional centralized grid, which often leaves entire regions in darkness when there is failure at a single point in the system. With the mini-grid, if an outage occurs in one part of the state, it won’t affect other areas. Each operator is responsible for generation, distribution, and supply within their designated zones, which enhances resilience and reliability.”
Raw material options for potential investors are the abundant gas and renewable energy sources, including solar in the state. The availability of a massive body of water in the state for energy generation is an added advantage. Naturally, an investor would prefer a cheaper alternative that offers mouthwatering profit. The options are all there for sorting and adoption by prospective investors. With a population of more than six million, the majority of them literate and engaged in diverse economic activities, Delta State is a huge market for the electricity industry.
In the last two decades, the state has become highly urbanized with new cities and townships emerging. Delta State boasts of a few cities and towns, such as Warri, Effurun, Asaba, Sapele, Agbor, Ughelli, Oleh, and Kwale among others. These key communities could, in our view, serve as a nucleus for the mini-grids, depending on the choice of the investors. On their own, businessmen and women had established micro-, small, and medium-scale enterprises all over the state, running on expensive generators. The bigger the economic complex, the more capital intensive they are to operate in terms of energy. This is why the electricity initiative is a very welcome development, as it would, when operational, significantly prune the cost of energy.
When fully actualized, the ongoing electricity reform would provide a reliable energy supply and speed up the birth of new enterprises and renovation of existing or abandoned categories in the state. Opportunities for investment exist in agriculture, manufacturing, oil and gas, creative arts, fashion designing, and leather works, among other areas. Agriculture alone provides a wide array of options, including tree crops, staple crops, livestock, and fisheries, with the attendant agro-allied businesses. All of the above means more jobs for the people and revenue into government accounts.
While we commend the state government for the current initiative, which would indeed drive the much-awaited industrialization of the state, we urge the organized private sector to leverage the platform to plant in the fertile soil that the state presents, from the riverine to the upland areas. We also implore whoever may be appointed as a consultant to the strategic project to key into the speed of the administration to drive the process seamlessly.
