By Constance Athekame
The House of Representatives Committee on Safety Standards and Regulations has commended the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) for upholding high safety standards at the Calabar Power Plant in Odukpani, Cross River.
Mr Emmanuel Ojor, Head, Corporate Communications and External Relations, NDPHC made this known in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday.
Ojor said that the committee gave the commendation after an on-the-spot assessment of the 565 Megawatts (MW) facility in Odukpani, noting the significant improvements since its last visit in 2018.
Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Safety Standards and Regulations, Rep David Idris Zacharias
The committee also called for improvement in the work environment for staff, including better lighting, rest areas for shift workers, and adequate seating in offices.
He listed members of the committee that visited the plant to include chairman of the Committee, Rep David Idris Zacharias, Rep Harrison Anozie Nwadike, Rep Suleiman Abubakar Gumi, Rep. Kalejaiye Paul Adeboye, Rep El-Rasheed Abdullahi and Rep. Emmanuel Effiong Udo.
Ojor said that the lawmakers, who were conducted around the plant by the Chief Operating Officer of the Calabar Power Plant, Mr Ayoade Bex, described the facility as one of the best they had visited in terms of safety standards and compliance.
He quoted the chairman of the committee as saying that the inspection was aimed at ensuring that Nigerians work in safe environments and enjoy long, healthy lives.
Zacharias also commended the staff for maintaining the plant, stressing that the health and safety of workers in the power sector were critical to both government and the economy.
“We, the safety standards and regulations committee members, always appreciate when we step into any organisation and see that they have done very well.
“My impression here is positive, and you also heard the same from my honourable colleagues,” he said.
The chairman, however, explained that the visit was not only to commend but also to highlight areas requiring improvement.
“When we come to a place like this, we must observe areas that need attention. What we are saying here is to encourage them to deepen their commitment to safety issues.
“We went round and saw their challenges, which we will take back to the government.
“We are hopeful that by the time we return, some of the issues we observed would have been addressed,” he said.
Welcoming the delegation on behalf of the Executive Director, Generation, Mr Abdullahi Kassim, the General Manager, Generation Projects at NDPHC, Valerie Agberagba, said safety and standards remained top priorities for the company.
According to her, the company’s workforce is central to its operations, adding that NDPHC would continue to improve the work environment for staff, particularly those at its power plants.
“The visit of the House Committee on Safety Standards and Regulations is very important to us.
“It gives us the opportunity to assess where we are in terms of health, safety, and compliance with regulations and standards at our power plants.
“For me, it was an eye-opener. You could see that when they compared the 2018 report to what they have now, there has been a great improvement in compliance.
” This shows that NDPHC is not taking issues of safety, regulations, and environmental standards for granted.
“We are working towards an environment that is safe for both our workers and the operation of the power plant,” she said.
She added that the company had taken note of the areas that needed improvements.
Agberaggba noted that “this management is very concerned about the welfare of the staff, because if they are not in a good position to work, we are not going to get the best out of them.
“So those little observations have to do with good conditions of work for the staff, we will make sure that these things are taken into consideration in the shortest possible time,”she said.
Also speaking, Acting Head, Health, Safety and Environment, NDPHC, Austin Ijagem said that the plant had not recorded any work related accident that had led to fatality since it began operations.
”The safety at the power plant has been top notch. Their consultant mentioned that in 2018, when they visited, there were a lot of pending issues, safety concerns that they raised.
” They have also acknowledged that when they came in today, the difference was clear. A lot of the safety concerns raised in 2018 have been addressed,”he said.
”This means we are getting nearer to almost zero pending issues as far as the safety at the power plant is concerned”, he said. (NAN)
