The United States Embassy in Abuja and the Consulate General in Lagos will observe a temporary closure on Thursday, January 9, 2025, in honor of the late Jimmy Carter, former President of the United States, who passed away on December 29, 2024, at the age of 100.

This announcement was made on Wednesday through a statement from the U.S. Mission to Nigeria on its official X account.

Carter, the 39th President of the United States, served from 1977 to 1981 and is widely celebrated for his commitment to peace negotiations, promotion of democratic values, and advocacy for human rights. Additionally, he authored numerous books during his lifetime.

The statement praised Carter’s remarkable contributions to U.S.-Nigeria relations, stating, “We remember former President Jimmy Carter, a tireless advocate for peace, democracy, and human rights. As the first U.S. President to visit Nigeria, he helped strengthen U.S.-Nigeria relations and supported Nigeria’s democratic process. His legacy continues to inspire us.”

The closure of the diplomatic missions serves as a reflection of the profound respect for Carter’s legacy, particularly his role in fostering strong ties between the United States and Nigeria.

Amid the high cost of electricity and incessant power fluctuations, Nigerian Breweries Plc has got approval to generate captive power in its offices located in Abia, Oyo, and Enugu states.

Cumulatively, Nigerian Breweries is generating up to 41MW in the four stations.

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission disclosed this in a report, saying the permits were granted in the third quarter of 2024.

Following the signing of the Electricity Act 2023, many companies appear to be leaving the national grid to generate their own power.

According to the NERC, captive power generation permits are issued to entities that intend to own and maintain power plants exclusively for their consumption. This means there is no sale of electricity generated from the plant to any third party.

The commission said it approved the grant of captive power generation permits to 11 applicants with a gross capacity of 63.36 megawatts.

Also, six Nigerian universities and the Nigerian Defence Academy were given permits to generate captive electricity.

The University of Abuja got a permit to generate 3MW; University of Calabar & Teaching Hospital, Cross River State is generating 7MW; University of Agriculture Micheal Okpara, Umetuke, Abia State, 3MW; University of Maiduguri & Teaching Hospital, Borno State, 12MW; Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta Main Campus, Ogun State, 3MW; and the Federal University Gashuwa, Yobe State, 1.50MW.

The Nigerian Defence Academy, a military university based in Kaduna got NERC’s nod to generate 2.50MW of electricity.

Last year, the Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, disclosed that the Federal Government had approved electricity subsidies for tertiary education and health institutions to address their concerns following the removal of subsidies in areas categorised under Band A feeders.

After the Federal Government removed subsidies from customers in Band A and upgraded their daily electricity supply to a minimum of 20 hours daily, universities and public hospitals cried out that their bills had skyrocketed.

The College of Medicine of the University of Lagos and the Lagos University Teaching Hospital cried out over what they described as an outrageous electricity bill charged by the Eko Electricity Distribution Company.

The institutions said they were jointly presented with a bill of about N280m for May instead of the less than N100m they used to pay.

The monthly bill given to UNILAG jumped from N180m to N300m.

The Federal University of Technology, Akure had its bill raised from N20m to N60m by the Ibadan DisCo.

At the University of Benin, the tariff was hiked from N80m monthly to N250m.

The Vice-Chancellor of Babcock University, Ogun State, Prof. Ademola Tayo, said in July that the institution paid N300m as electricity tariff in May, lamenting that the high electricity tariff was a great threat to quality education in Nigeria.

Aside from the high cost of energy, many Nigerian institutions are also battling low supply and fluctuations coupled with repeated grid collapses.

With permits to generate captive power, Nigerian Breweries and academic institutions will have a stable power supply to run their daily activities.

Within the period under review, the commission certified seven Meter Service Providers, five-meter installer companies, and two-meter manufacturers.

The commission also issued 22 permits for Meter Asset Providers within the period even as it issued 50 orders to guide the activities of licensees.

Former Principal Private Secretary to Edo State Governor, Dr. Tony Ikpasaja, has stepped in the saddle as the Managing Director of Edo State Geographic Information Service (EDOGIS).

Ikpasaja, who was recently appointed by the State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, has now resumed duty following the retirement from the State Civil Service of the former Managing Director, ESV Osaro Grace Aihie.

Ikpasaja, who resumed on Monday, January 6th, 2025, met with top management staff members of the Agency, outlining the expectations from the Governor of the State.

He was subsequently conducted round the various departments and units.

He interacted with members of staff on the operations of the agency and charged the management and staff members to work as a team.

He underscored the need to upscale their strategy to take the agency to greater heights..

Ikpasaja holds a Ph.D. from the University of Abuja, specialising in infrastructure development and multinational agencies.

He started his journalism career in the Vanguard newspapers and later joined Thisday Newspapers from where he was appointed as Press Secretary to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, BOT Chairman, Chief Tony Anenih in 2003.

He was also a Special Adviser (Media) to the Governor of Edo state in 2007 and Special Assistant (Media) at the Federal Ministry of Works in 2011.

Ikpasaja is also a trained data analyst and worked at the Road Sector Development Team (RSDT), a World Bank/FG Collaborative Agency, from 2015 to 2021.

Dr. Ikpasaja was also a lecturer at the University of Abuja until last year and a member of the 2024 Transition Committee in Edo State.

Until his new appointment, he was the Principal Private Secretary to Governor Monday Okpebholo.

As a team player, he brings to the table a wealth of experience from the media, ICT, and infrastructure development sector.

His hobbies include lawn tennis and football. Ikpasaja is married to Mrs. Kate Ikpasaja, and both have three lovely children.