The Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN) has commenced the installation of a 4MW solar hybrid power system with full battery storage at the Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital (AKTH).
The project comes barely three days after the Kano Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO) disconnected the hospital’s power supply, a development that sparked outrage following reports that three patients died during the outage.
Mr. Mustapha Abdullahi, Director-General of the commission, disclosed this on his verified social media handle on Thursday.
“Today, we are commencing the installation of a 4MW solar hybrid system with 100 per cent battery storage at Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano State.
“In line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, this project will take the hospital completely off the national grid and guarantee steady power for quality healthcare,” he said.
Abdullahi added that the initiative was part of the commission’s efforts to provide clean and reliable energy solutions to strengthen health institutions and improve the lives of Nigerians.
NAN reports that the intervention followed a crisis between the hospital and KEDCO over the disconnection of electricity supply to its facilities.
Mr. Sani Bala, Public Relations Officer of KEDCO, said the action was part of an ongoing procedure to separate the hospital campus from its residential quarters.
“The attention of KEDCO has been drawn to reports concerning the appeal by AKTH regarding the alleged disconnection of its electricity supply, which was said to have led to the loss of lives.
“We wish to clarify that electricity supply to AKTH has since been restored,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Kano State Police Command had earlier intervened by convening a meeting between the hospital management and KEDCO to resolve the dispute amicably.