The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has disclosed that the Federal Government was spending N1bn monthly to power the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos.
He stated this Monday during the ministerial press briefing in Abuja to mark President Bola Tinubu’s first year in office.
According to Keyamo, the ministry is planning to reduce the heavy cost by investing in solar power systems.
Keyamo explained that the ministry was bypassing the power distribution companies to buy electricity directly from the generating companies, saying that method would save the Federal Government about N300m.
“We want to run our airports with solar and that will save us so much every month. Lagos airport alone, I was told we do N1bn every month, and I asked why.
“The first thing I said they should do is bypass the Discos and go to the Gencos because we are eligible customers. Why do you pay a Disco that will add profit when you are an eligible customer? Cut them off and go to the Gencos straight. We are doing that and they are protesting up and down to go and meet the president. By doing that, we are saving 30 per cent. When we are supposed to pay N1bn, we will pay N600m,” the minister stated.
Meanwhile, Keyamo emphasised that the Nigeria Air project remained suspended.
In 2023, the Ministry of Aviation, under Hadi Sirika, unveiled Nigeria Air three days before the end of former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
The development elicited concerns among stakeholders nationwide over the ownership arrangement, which gave Ethiopian Airlines a 49 per cent equity stake.
The Federal Government had five per cent equity, while a consortium of three Nigerian investors had 46 per cent.
Reacting to the deal in June 2023, the House of Representatives asked the Federal Government to suspend the operations of Nigeria Air, describing it as a fraud.
In August 2023, Keyamo announced that the national carrier project was suspended until further notice.
Keyamo said, “It remains suspended. It was never Air Nigeria. It was not Air Nigeria. That is the truth. It was only painted Air Nigeria. It was Ethiopian Airlines trying to flag our flag.
“If it is so, why not allow our local people to fly our flag? Why bring a foreigner to fly our flag? So, nobody should dispute that it was Air Nigeria.
“Air Nigeria must be indigenous, must be wholly Nigerian, and must be for the full benefits of Nigeria, not that 50 per cent of the profit is for another country,” he explained.
Keyamo reiterated that the ownership structure of the suspended airline was not beneficial to the country.