Nigeria Seeks To Revive Mambilla Hydropower Project After Arbitration Win

Nigeria has asked China Energy Engineering Corp, known as Energy China, to examine the most practical way to revive the long-delayed Mambilla hydropower project, including the possibility of delivering it in phases, the government said.

The move follows Nigeria’s victory in an international arbitration case brought by Sunrise Power and Transmission over the project.

An International Chamber of Commerce tribunal in Paris on Thursday  dismissed Sunrise’s $400 million claim against Nigeria, removing a major legal obstacle to the planned hydropower scheme.

The tribunal also rejected Sunrise’s claim that Nigeria had breached contractual obligations under a settlement agreement and related addendum.

Power Minister Joseph Tegbe said larger hydropower projects, including Mambilla, alongside smaller schemes serving agricultural corridors, were part of Nigeria’s medium- and long-term electricity strategy, according to state broadcaster NTA.

Nigeria’s recent power mission to China also secured commitments from Chinese engineering companies and financiers to accelerate several priority electricity projects, the government said.

China Machinery Engineering Corp (CMEC) reaffirmed its role in Nigeria’s 1.9-gigawatt Presidential Power Initiative, with the first transmission lines expected to be delivered in the first quarter of 2027, according to the government.

China National Electric Engineering Co (CNEEC) has also advanced financing arrangements for the $116 million Zungeru power evacuation project, while TBEA has committed to a proposed $500 million industrial park for power-equipment manufacturing.

HengFei Cables has committed to supplying cables for the second phase of the Presidential Power Initiative and proposed establishing a cable assembly plant and training centre in Nigeria, the government said.

Nigeria’s government says the initiatives are intended to combine power infrastructure development with local manufacturing and technical training as it seeks to expand electricity supply.

The Mambilla project, planned in Taraba state, has faced years of delays.

The latest arbitration ruling could allow the government to renew efforts to secure financing and advance construction.