By: Akinjide Adebowale
The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, Professor Kayode Adebowale says that the school pays up to the tune of 90 million naira in monthly electricity bills.
Giving a speech during the handover ceremony of the new Student Union executives and legislative members at Trenchard Hall on July 4th, Professor Kayode Adebowale shed light on the challenges the university faces regarding the high cost of electricity supply.
The Vice Chancellor emphasized that the monthly allocation received from the federal government is inadequate to meet the university’s electricity needs. He disclosed that the school currently receives a monthly disbursement of 15 million naira from the federal government, which is sometimes not fully disbursed. Additionally, he revealed that the average electricity bill incurred by the university amounts to 90 million naira per month, not including the expenses for generator maintenance.
Furthermore, he highlighted the university’s commitment to ensuring the welfare of students. He recounted an example of that underscores this claim:
“during your exam period, the electricity supply to this university was disconnected, you won’t know, but the administration, we had to run around, and say “no”, we cannot allow it. Within 24 hours, the electricity supply was restored”.
While speaking on how the university generates power, the Vice Chancellor clarified that the school currently draws its electricity from the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC), which is a distribution company, not an electricity generation company. However, the university has been working on transitioning from the IBEDC to directly generating power from the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN). To that end, he announced that the university has obtained approval for the establishment of a 33kv station, which will significantly reduce electricity tariffs by 50 percent upon its full implementation.
