By John Odhe, YENAGOA
Commissioned by President Bola Tinubu on April 10, 2026, the 60 Megawatts Bayelsa State owned Gas Turbine Plant located at Elebele has yet to deliver its promised 24-hour electricity to residents of Yenagoa, the State capital.
Consequently, the immediate economic effect on small-scale businesses has been minimal, with owners still enduring erratic power and heavy reliance on costly diesel and petrol generators.
This is not because the gas powered plant lacks the capacity to generate power to all parts of the capital city but due to distribution and evacuation hurdles, preventing the power from fully reaching most small-scale businesses in areas like Amarata, part of Kpansia, Okaka, Onopa, Yenizue-Epie, Ovom, Swali and other places.
Small scale enterprises such as welding shops, cold-room operators, salons, and cybercafes are forced to maintain their previous overhead structures, paying heavily for premium motor spirit (PMS) or diesel to stay operational.
A source close to the Bayelsa Electricity Company told our correspondent that shortage of feeder poles and vandalized transformers in several areas due to longtime power outages were major setbacks, noting that only two out of the eight gas turbine units were being test run.
Our correspondent gathered that only some parts of Opolo, Biogbolo, Kpansia, Okutukutu, Etegwe and Edepie have witnessed a slightly improved electricity supply.
Meanwhile, a small scale businessman, Mr. Douglas Bowei, a shoe maker along Dimrose street, Biogbolo said the past few days have been a sigh of relief with a reduced cost of petrol due to improvement in power supply.
“There’s a great relief. I know how much I spend daily on fuel alone. But now that we are witnessing up to seven to eight hours light, it has helped me a great deal. Kudos to the State government,” Bowei acknowledged.
Also, a barber at Okutukutu, Onome Abraham confirmed that electricity has improved in his area.
He appealed to the State government to expedite action on installation of new transformers, feeder lines and other electricals to enable optimal functioning of the new turbines.
Residents are upbeat that once distribution networks and regulatory frameworks managed by the Bayelsa State Electricity Regulatory Agency (BYERA) are fully streamlined, the expected effects of the project will include: cost reduction.
Phasing out expensive diesel and petrol generators, the believe, will drastically reduce operating costs for local business owners.
They also advocated state-operated smart prepaid meters to replace flat-rate or estimated billing, allowing businesses to control energy usage via a pay-as-you-go format.
