Okpai IPP Step-Down: How Government Deceived Ndokwa People for 20 Years
For over two decades, the people of Ndokwa nation—comprising Ndokwa East, Ndokwa West, and Ukwuani local government areas of Delta State—have lived in the shadow of Nigeria’s largest independent power plant, yet with little or no electricity to show for it. The Okpai Independent Power Plant (IPP), which supplies hundreds of megawatts of electricity to the national grid, has become a glaring symbol of government neglect, broken promises, and systemic marginalisation.
Commissioned in April 2005 under President Olusegun Obasanjo, the Okpai IPP was designed to generate 480 megawatts of electricity in its first phase, with an expectation that host communities within a 50-kilometre radius would benefit directly from the supply through a process known as “step-down.” Obasanjo reportedly directed at the time that at least 50MW should be stepped down to Ndokwa communities.
Yet, 20 years later, that directive remains largely unfulfilled.
While communities like Obosi in Anambra State have since benefitted from a step-down station, the Ndokwa people, who host the power plant and the gas infrastructure that fuels it, remain in darkness.
Numerous administrations have promised intervention, and contractors such as NNPC–NAOC (Agip) and Saipem pushed forward a second phase expansion that added 450MW to the plant’s capacity.
However, the expansion was abandoned midstream, leaving equipment to rot and infrastructure unused.
This prolonged neglect has provoked deep anger and feelings of betrayal among local residents.
“This is nothing short of a systemic deception,” said Victory Oghene, a public affairs analyst. “The Ndokwa people have waited two decades, watching billions in power generation flow to the grid while their own homes stay dark.”
Following growing public pressure, both chambers of the National Assembly began probing the situation in early 2024.
In February 2024, the House of Representatives passed a motion directing its Committee on Power to investigate the funding, contract execution, and the halted second phase of the project.
A similar resolution was adopted by the Senate in March, ordering a detailed inquiry into why the long-promised 50–100MW step-down to Ndokwa was never realized.
Lawmakers demanded that responsible agencies, including the Federal Ministry of Power, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), and contracting firms, explain their roles in the prolonged power blackout in the host communities.
Senator Ned Nwoko, who represents Delta North in the Senate, has been among the most vocal political figures pushing for answers. In a public statement, he accused his predecessors of failing to fight for their people and blamed successive federal administrations for deceiving the Ndokwa nation.
“For years, they made promises and set up committees, but nothing changed,” Nwoko said. “It’s a shame that a community hosting a major power plant lives in darkness. We won’t stop until this injustice is reversed.”
He called for the Delta State Government to get directly involved, suggesting that state-level intervention may be more effective in pushing federal agencies to act.
The Okpai IPP issue has become more than a technical failure—it is now a political flashpoint and a symbol of a larger grievance among oil and gas-hosting communities in the Niger Delta who feel they contribute much but benefit little. Despite years of suffering environmental degradation and economic exploitation, the Ndokwa people remain underserved and underrepresented in federal infrastructure planning.
With federal investigations underway and local pressure mounting, many residents hope the next chapter will not be another empty promise but a turning point for long-denied electricity access.
“Power has passed through our land for two decades,” said one local youth leader, “but we’ve never had the light.”
