Nasarawa: Where Smes Rely On Generators For Electricity

Lukman Olukoya is a technician and the owner of Nakowa Technical Works in Lafia. Olukoya who has trained many technicians says the insufficient electricity supply has made business difficult for SMEs in the state.

Lukman Olukoya popularly called “Nakowa” is the owner of Nakowa metal works on Kurikyo road, Lafia in Nasarawa State. He ventured into fabrication in 1988 and learnt the skill from Danzaki Technical Works and because he had the zeal to learn the trade, he was able to learn and surpass his contemporaries and started mounting the delicate heavy duty lathe machine in six months and graduated in only three years instead of the mandatory five years in 1991.

Since he graduated, he relocated from Kaduna to Lafia and that is where he has been operating for almost three decades.

Lukman Olukoya said, “I have trained twenty boys in Lafia or what is called ‘freedom’ in local parlance. However, small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) are in desperate need of electricity in Lafia. We  get about five hours of electricity supply daily at no fixed time coupled with an alleged overbilling of customers by the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company otherwise known as AE

When I came from Kaduna to Nasarawa, there was electricity then, during the time of the defunct National Electric Power Authority, (NEPA), but later on when the Power Holding Company (PHCN) and later AEDC held sway, the bill charged was increasing from the money from few hundreds to thousands of naira while the power supplied to the consumers was decreasing till when it came to about four to one hours daily.

However about ten years ago, he said, he bought a generator and started relying on it and when he realized that his customers wants efficiency and were inpatient, he then bought a generator and solely relied on it from nine in the morning to six in the evenings and he told PHCN and later AEDC to disconnect him due to their inefficiency.

Olukoya said, “I now spend about four thousand naira daily on diesel for my generator which is expensive. Though expensive but its reliable because my business uses heavy duty equipment. One for drilling, one for plating and other machines that rely solely on power from three-phase supply of electricity daily. If there is power, I will be happy as I will save some money to expand by buying more modern machines.”

Olukoya continues: “This is the case with many SMEs in Lafia and that is why we won’t grow. We are calling on the federal and state government to connect Lafia to national grid for power to stabilize and for SMEs to grow. If the power supply would improve and I pay like eight thousand naira with estimated or prepaid meter, I would be good. I and others like me spend a lot of money on diesel, routine service and general maintenance and if you calculate it, it all boils down on the SMEs and the local consumers.”

However, Olukoya said, for one to start fabrication business, one needs to have a capital of about one million to start small with one small lathe machine which costs about 400,000 thousand naira, including renting a shop and a source of light which is a dedicated generator. While one could upgrade his working machines in due course as a medium lathe machine costs about 700,000 naira and a big one goes for 2 million naira.

He said he bought his fairly used filling, lathe, drilling, plating machine some years ago as ‘Belguim’ at  the cost of N1.8 about seven years ago, but due to the increase in the exchange rate, the cost is now about 2.5 million from a dealer in Lagos or even if one imports directly. He said he started with the small lathe and later on upgraded.

Similarly, Lukman Olukoya said he was amazed by the simplicity of a graduate in Engineering but did not know how to operate a lathe machine. “At his spare time , he came to me and I taught him to operate the machine,” he said.

The Technician however called on the government to always ensure that those in the university were taught practical or sent to them to learn the practical before they graduate for the development of Nigeria. He said is it sad that youth with degrees don’t know how to operate a lathe machine, while they have teenagers who operate different heavy duty machines while they are in junior secondary schools.

He said he is happy to be in a state that has been in peace, earning his livelihood, paying tax to Lafia Local Governmrnt, Nasarawa State government and to the Federal Inland Revenue Service, (FIRS) and then training eight boys.

Lukeman Olukoya who has trained many technicians however called on the youth to learn any trade or handicraft for them to earn a living and develop the country.