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Lagos — The federal government has secured a guarantee of $22 billion, a part of over $50 billion investments' target in the power sector as the move to finalise the sale of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) in June got a boost.

A document obtained by Daily Independent on Thursday showed that new owner will take over management of the PHCN by end of the second quarter of 2011 despite the outcry by workers against the move.

Investors under the auspices of the Commonwealth Business Council, according to the document, have expressed an interest in investing $20 billon while Essar committed to invest $2 billion in Nigeria's power sector.

The Presidential Task Force on Power (PTFP) confirmed this on Thursday, noting that interested companies are to submit expressions of interest latest by February 18, 2011.

The expressions of interest in taking up 51 percent stake of the six generation and 11 distribution PHCN successor companies, according to PTFP, had been published.

Chairman of the Communications Committee of PTFP, Dr. Abimbola Agboluaje who stated this maintained that the roadmap on power sector reforms is explicit on the government's stand on this.

"Shortlisted companies will be invited to submit bids for the successor companies early in the second quarter of 2011 and winning bidders will take over management of the companies by the end of the second quarter of 2011", he said.

He maintained that the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) had initiated studies and consultations to determine a level of tariffs that would stimulate investment by making it possible for investors to recover their costs.

Meanwhile, the PHCN Somolu Business Unit said on Thursday that its management spent over N20 million to replace vandalised items within its district areas in 2010.

Akinola Ayeni Senior Manager, Public Affairs of the District made this known in a statement issued in Lagos saying that over 12 transformer sub-stations vandalised in 2010 were replaced to ensure customers enjoy supply.

The spokesman said that the Business District of the PHCN raised alarm over incessant vandalisation of its equipment in the areas by unidentified persons as a result of what their activities have cost the company.

He said that PHCN transformers and cables in 12 of the company's sub-stations at Somolu and its environs were vandalised within a year by unidentified persons.

"This incessant vandalism and destruction of PHCN equipment in Somolu district is devilish, barbaric and unproductive and aims at crippling the operations of the company," he said.

London, England (CNN) -- They may be cleaner than their gas-guzzling cousins, but manufacturers are increasingly concerned that electric cars' near-silent motors could pose a problem for pedestrians navigating city streets.

The safety issue is spurring on UK researchers to test-drive a range of artificial sounds which could see the traditional sound of the combustion engine being replaced by the sound of, among other things, space invaders.

Using a specially built electric van called ELVIN (Electric Vehicle with Interactive Noise) researchers at Warwick University's WMG (formerly Warwick Manufacturing Group) are finding out what noises alert pedestrians efficiently and without annoyance.

Click here to evaluate the sounds for yourself

Using the audio engineering expertise of NoViSim and EC Tunes, WMG has created six separate sounds which have been programmed into the van.

People are then asked to give their opinions on the sound of the van as it travels around the university campus.

"Sound not only alerts people to the presence and direction of a vehicle, it also indicates the type of vehicle and whether it is stopping or accelerating," says Paul Jennings, head of automotive research at WMG.

Jennings anticipates that the sounds used for electric cars will be tailored to the type of model.

"The sounds for, say, a sports car, saloon or a city runaround will probably need to be different," Jennings says.

"But the crucial thing is that they need to be safe and environmentally friendly."

Furthermore, creating new sounds is also an opportunity for automakers to convey other messages, Jennings says.

"You can imagine that manufacturers would be very excited about doing something with sound that could be personalized."

Sounds, he says, enable manufacturers to "portray messages about the brand and quality," and "help form part of [the owner's] relationship with it."

Jennings and his team at WMG have worked closely with auto manufacturers for several years now, but mostly fine-tuning interior noise in prestige cars.

This project, Jennings says, is more of "a blank sheet of paper" which presents "a significant challenge."

The pilot study will be followed by a longer, more detailed, period of research, simulating electric car sounds alongside a range of other vehicles.

The prospect of thousands of silent electric vehicles hitting city streets is already occupying the minds of legislators on both sides of the Atlantic.

A bill -- "Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act of 2009" -- is currently at committee stage in the U.S. Congress, examining if there is a need for minimum sound levels on motor vehicles. The European Union is also considering similar legislation.

Research coming out of North America is already flagging up safety issues with electric car noise, Jennings says. But until guidelines -- if any -- are set down in law, he says he can't be sure how electric cars may end up sounding.

It's still early days, but auto manufacturers are already looking to take the lead in what is predicted to be a highly lucrative market.

Earlier this year, David Jackson, electric vehicle project manager at Nissan UK, told UK newspaper The Times that the company's electric Leaf model could be equipped with a "Star Wars noise" to alert pedestrians.

In Japan, Toyota has already begun selling a noise-making device which can be fitted to its best-selling hybrid Prius model. It also plans to sell the device, which emits a humming sound, in other markets including the U.S.

Abuja — Following the ongoing reforms in the nation's power sector, the federal government has restated its commitment to ensure a private sector-driven system, stressing that the privatisation of the generation and distribution arms of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) would be completed by the first quarter of next year.

The Minister of State for Power, Arc. Nuhu Somo Wya, made this known yesterday in Abuja during a meeting with a team of investors of the Commonwealth Business Council led by Peter Sharper.

Wya said: "It is with this goal in mind that the present administration last month, published its roadmap for the power sector reform and has commenced implementing a reform programme designed to incentivise private sector investment and pass the 17 generation and distribution companies to private ownership."

The roadmap intends to attract private sector investment of $3.5 billion annually in a bid to move power generation from the current 3,500 megawatts to 40,000mw by the year 2020. In the interim, government hopes to attain the 7,000mw by April 2011, given recent moves to make the price of gas attractive to enable oil companies invest in gas processing and transmission projects.

The minister emphasised that government was determined to reinvigorate and drive to completion, the reform process first enunciated in 2001 because " we now have the plans and the people able to deliver on this commitment".

Maintaining that the transmission arm would still be in government hands while its management might have to be contracted out to private firms, he assured that president Jonathan hopes that Nigeria might attain regular power supply by the end of 2013.

The Federal Government plans to sell 51 per cent of its stakes in the 17 out of the 18 successor companies of Power Holding Company of Nigeria.

Eleven of the companies are into distribution and they will be sold in 2011. Six are in the generation business.

According to the roadmap to power sector unveiled on Thursday by President Goodluck Jonathan, the government will not sell the Transmission Company of Nigeria.

But the transmission company, which is in charge of the National Grid, will be managed by the private sector.

The roadmap reads, “With regard to the medium to long term horizon, the government intends that full responsibility for the operational effectiveness of the distribution companies should shift from the Federal Government to the private sector no later than 2011.

“Nevertheless, the actions and decisions of the Federal Government will continue to exert a significant impact on their commercial effectiveness.

“All the distribution companies are expected to be privatised based on a core investor sale of a minimum of 51 per cent of the government‘s equity in the companies.

“The PHCN successor, thermal generating plants, will be privatised via the sale of a minimum of 51 per cent equity to core investors that clearly demonstrate the technical and financial ability to operate and expand each plant.”

The roadmap can be sighted on www.nigeria. powerreform.org.

Jonathan had at the unveiling of the roadmap in Lagos, said that the Federal Government was preparing to leave the power sector in the hands of private operators.

He explained that the government would retain the transmission grid and regulate the operators of the generating and transmission companies.

The President also assured that power would become stable in 2012, the year that independent power producers would have added 5,000 Mega Watts.

He said, “By 2012, Nigerians will not only celebrate one day of stable power supply but one week and one month of uninterrupted power supply.

“We have stated on a number of occasions that on the attainment of stability in the sector, government will disengage from generation and distribution of electricity in the country.

“Government will encourage private sector participation in this area. Therefore, as articulated in the Electricity Power Sector Reform Act, the private sector will be responsible for generation and distribution, while government will still hold the transmission grid but with private sector management.”

The President said at the event attended by 13 state governors and deputy governors , including Mr. Babatunde Fashola (Lagos) and Otunba Gbenga Daniel (Ogun), that independent power plants built by private operators would soon be inaugurated.

He said, “We are in the process of inaugurating independent power producers, international oil companies and companies that have captive production of electricity to produce at least 5,000MW of new capacity.

“These plants will begin production in 2012 and 2013.

“Government will provide incentives that will encourage them to invest in the construction of the power plants.”

Jonathan pointed out that the success recorded in the telecoms sector had shown that only a private-sector led reform could revive the power sector.

“It is obvious that the electricity sector can only expand, like the telecoms sector did, after privatisation,” he added.

The President added that government had decided to implement the power sector reform Act by privatising the 11 electricity distribution companies to bring efficiency into distribution management.

“The distribution infrastructure is dilapidated. The Federal Government has decided to follow through on the Power Sector Reform Act by privatising distribution companies to bring about effectiveness,” Jonathan said.

He also said that government had taken steps to reconstitute the board of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, which was dissolved by the late President Umaru Yar’Adua.

He said, “The list of the members will be sent to the National Assembly on Monday, next week. I will also send a chairman that will have credential like the INEC chairman (Prof. Attahiru Jega). I decided to do so because we need a revolution in the power sector.

“We expect that those who will be in that commission will drive the power sector reform initiative.”

Jonathan said that Nigeria’s electricity tariff was the lowest in the West African sub-region, stressing that government was adjusting it for it to be “cost reflective.”

He, however, added that the interest of the ordinary customer would be protected in the tariff adjustment.

The President also said that government had made available, the sum N57bn for the payment of monetisation arrears of Power Holding Company of Nigeria workers.

Jonathan added that government had set aside funds to pay severance packages to the PHCN workers that might be affected by the sale of the 11 distribution companies.

Also, the Minister of State for Power, Mr. Nuhu Wya, said the power sector could only be rescued from total collapse through sustainable policies anchored on reforming it along commercial imperatives.

At the event, Fashola called on the Federal Government to start the implementation of critical power projects from Lagos State in order to enable the nation achieve the greatest impact with minimum effort and resources.

A statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Mr. Hakeem Bello, quoted the governor as also saying that investment decisions should be made in Lagos on the basis of economic and developmental common sense rather than emotional “cronyism.”

He said ”This(Lagos) is Nigeria‘s largest consumer market, this is Nigeria‘s financial power house, this is the country‘s largest consumer of electricity, and this must be the prime destination for the investment of Nigeria‘s prime resource if we truly desire to achieve the greatest impact with the minimum of effort and resources.”

Fashola noted that year 2010 was the 21st year since Nigeria’s capital moved from Lagos to Abuja.

”This(Jonathan’s) visit, coming 21 years after that historic movement, is capable of many interpretations; but I do sincerely expect that after we have listened to Your Excellency(Jonathan), the most important interpretation will be the one you will leave us with,” he said.

He pointed out that cities like Paris, New York, London, Accra were the places from which global impression of France, United States, United Kingdom and Ghana were formed.

The governor said, ”The impression of Nigeria is formed from Lagos by the millions who use her sea and airports. If we must therefore improve on that impression, Lagos is like the sitting room of the Nigerian household that must be maintained in a pristine condition; and must get federal funding support for electricity, roads, water supply and critical infrastructure.”

Jonathan, in his address, commended Fashola for the warm reception he received.

The other governors that were present included Adebayo Alao-Akala (Oyo), Patrick Yakowa (Kaduna), Liyel Imoke (Cross River), Aliyu Doma (Nassarawa), and Saidu Dakingari (Kebbi).

The National Union of Electricity Employees has called off its nationwide strike. The union reportedly took the decision in the early hours of Thursday.

The PHNC workers had on Wednesday commenced a nationwide strike, citing the non-payment of their monetisation arrears by the management as reason for their action. More details later