Aba, a state in the south-east of Nigeria, is known as one of the country’s industrial centres, with manufacturing, fashion, leatherwork and furniture hubs. However, the availability of stable and adequate power was, for a long time, the one thing holding back the state’s industrious entrepreneurs.
Businesses have had to rely on diesel and petrol generators, adding to the costs of existing businesses and discouraging new investors. That was until the revival of the Aba Integrated Power Plant, backed by a $50m loan from Africa Export-Import Bank in 2021.
Revival of the Aba Power Project
Developed by Geometric Power, the project has made more power available to Aba’s residents and entrepreneurs, creating the conditions for businesses to expand, for new enterprises to be built and for jobs to be created. First conceived about two decades ago, the Aba power projects stalled when a concession secured by Geometric Power was sold to another company.
Geometric Power, which had already built a 27-kilometre gas pipeline linking a gas processing station to the power plant, was forced to seek legal redress, eventually securing its rights to the concession. “It was an extremely, extremely difficult period,” recalls Professor Bart O. Nnaji, founder and chairman of Geometric Power.
According to Derin Fajuyitan, head of trade enabling infrastructure, project and asset based finance at Afreximbank, the bank was convinced by the underlying rationale for the project. The project was thus an opportunity for the bank to support businesses in the state to expand and create jobs.
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Impact on the Local Economy
The facility provided by Afreximbank helped finance the completion of the Aba Integrated Power Project and enabled Geometric Power to finally begin supplying electricity to customers in its designated area. The project is expected to contribute significantly to the local economy, with Geometric Power’s electricity supply projected to help increase Abia State’s GDP by around 8%, while lowering energy costs and attracting new businesses.
Early indications suggest that it is having the right impact. According to management of the plant, electricity access has improved dramatically in the distribution area. Alfred Ategie, an engineer and head of metering at Aba Power Electric Company, points to an increase in metering penetration from 2% when operations at the plant began to an astounding 80%.
More significantly, businesses that had previously left the state are returning. “Industries that left years ago are coming back. And you know what that means? When industry comes, there will be increasing employment opportunities,” Ategie notes. Ugo Opiegbe, managing director of Aba Power Electric Company, says new businesses are appearing across the area covered by the project.
For the captains of Aba’s industries, the most significant impact has been in their ability to now rely on stable power from the grid, a welcome change from the past when they had to fuel their generators with expensive fuel to be able to operate. One of these entrepreneurs is Prince Arthur Uche, founder and CEO of Beyond Clothing.
His garment factory produces school and corporate uniforms, but for most of its 19 years in operation, the company depended overwhelmingly on generators. “We had to run on diesel, and we were spending so much.” Reliable electricity changes the economics of the factory because its machines can operate more consistently and production can expand without the same dependence on fuel-powered generators.
A Broader Industrialisation Strategy
The impact is similarly visible in Aba’s furniture and manufacturing sector. Raymond Mkpurouma Aliga Mon, co-founder and CEO of R&A Mahogany and Interiors, invested in advanced CNC machinery after attending the Intra-African Trade Fair in 2021, where Afreximbank had committed to supporting Geometric Power. With his CNC machines able to run consistently now, he is able to produce designs that he was importing in the past.
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This effect is emblematic of the broader industrialisation strategy that Afreximbank is backing across the continent. Investments in industry-enabling infrastructure support local entrepreneurs to produce items to serve the local markets, reducing the need for imports and the concomitant pressure on foreign reserves. It also means more jobs, as Nnaji points out.
In Aba, where a vast network of artisans already exists, reliable power simply means empowering more people to do the jobs that they already have. The success of the Aba Power Project may have wider implications for Nigeria, which, despite being one of the continent’s largest economies, continues to be held back by insufficient capacity and inefficient distribution systems.
Aba demonstrates that a targeted approach can yield results. Rather than simply adding generation capacity to a national system, Geometric Power combines generation and distribution within a defined industrial and commercial area, allowing the benefits of reliable electricity to be concentrated where economic activity is already strong. This investment is important not only for its impact but for the model that it demonstrates.
Afreximbank did not create Aba’s entrepreneurial spirit. It did not invent its manufacturing culture or its appetite for enterprise. What it did was help remove one of the biggest constraints holding that potential back. In financing the revival of Geometric Power, Afreximbank has backed the idea that infrastructure should serve as a platform for productive transformation.
As a result, entrepreneurs like Prince Arthur Uche are now able to focus on expanding their businesses, rather than worrying about access to reliable power. This is especially important for businesses that rely on financial services to operate.
