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Gombe Govt. earmarks N3.24b for solar streetlights in state capital

Gombe Govt. earmarks N3.24b for solar streetlights in state capital

The Gombe State Government has approved the sum of N3.2 billion for the installation of solar streetlights in Gombe metropolis.


The Gombe Commissioner of Information and Culture, Mr Ibrahim Hassan stated this on Wednesday in Gombe while briefing journalists after the State’s Executive Council Meeting.


Hassan said the project would take three months to be completed and was expected to cover about 71kms of Gombe township roads.


He said part of the project would involve training for the youths while the fabrication and other necessary works would be done in Gombe to ensure local content and job creation


He said the essence of the training was to ensure sustainability as the contractor would manage the project for five years and afterwards the trained youths would maintain the streetlights.

Explaining further, Engr Abubakar Bappah, the state’s commissioner for Transport and Works said the state government’s choice for solar was as a result of the need to cut cost and to look for an environmentally-friendly alternative that meets best global standards to lightening the streets.

Bappah stated that the state government had spent N1.14 billion on diesel in the last contract to power the streetlights in the metropolis that ended in Feb. 2021.


“ The cost of diesel is high; the last contract for the diesel that expired this month is N1.14 billion and the contract was entered into when the cost of diesel was not as high as this.


“ If we are to renew such contract now for the next one year, the cost maybe twice that (old) one because of the increase in the cost of fuel,” he said
According to him, installing solar street lights was the best effective way to sustaining the streetlights in the metropolis


“We have engaged the contractor and now that it has been procured, the project will be completed in three months beginning from the day the site is handed over to the contractor.”


Bappah hinted that the solar streetlight project was the first of two lots, adding that the second which is expected to cover 42kms dual carriageway would be the next.

On the existing street lights, Bappah said they would be re-kitted by the contractor and “ that will also reduce the cost for us.”

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