By Abubakar Yunusa
Festus Keyamo, minister of aviation and aerospace development, says the federal government spends N1 billion monthly on electricity in “Lagos airport”.
Keyamo disclosed this to journalists on Monday at the ministerial press briefing in Abuja, held to mark President Bola Tinubu’s one year in office.
He said the ministry is making efforts to adopt eco-friendly practices to eliminate the use of diesel in airport operations.
According to the minister, by investing in solar power systems, the ministry will cut the high costs of operating the airports, saving the government 30 percent of the current monthly expenses.
“We are making cautious and gradual efforts towards embracing eco-friendly practices, which is actually what the world is about now — eco-friendly practices and green technologies in line with ICAO’s long-term global aspirational goal of net zero carbon emissions in the aviation sector,” Keyamo said.
“They want us to apply first of all, the type of fuel that does not burn so much, that is low carbon emission and that is why we want to eliminate the use of diesel to run our airports gradually.
“We want to run our airport on solar and that will save us so much every month. Lagos airport alone, I am told, we do N1 billion monthly on electricity. That is still something I am trying to crack.
“The first thing I said they should do is to bypass the DisCo and go to the GenCo because we are what they call eligible users, we are eligible customers. So why do you pay a DisCo that will put profit on top when you are an eligible customer? Cut them off and go to the GenCo straight.
“We are doing that and they are protesting up and down and meeting the president. Except Mr. president tells me to pay the extra money because by doing that, we are saving 30 percent.
“So, if we are supposed to pay N1 billion, we are going to pay N600 million in terms of consumption.”
Keyamo said unlike other airports that must close by 6 pm, international airports must operate 24 hours a day to accommodate incoming international flights.
This, he said, makes the airports very costly to operate, “which is why the ministry aims to switch to solar power”.
Never miss a moment! Get the stories shaping Nigeria, delivered straight to your phone. Follow Peoplesdaily Newspaper on WhatsApp for breaking news, exclusive reports, and the headlines everyone will be talking about, before anyone else.
