The Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission has convened the inaugural meeting of the Presidential Project Development Committee for the proposed Ikom Multipurpose Dam and Hydropower Project, marking the formal start of the project’s development under a Public-Private Partnership framework.
The committee was established following resolutions reached at a high-level stakeholders’ meeting at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa, where the dam project was designated a strategic national intervention.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the Acting Head of Media and Publicity at the commission, Ifeanyi Nwoko, said a Project Steering Committee and a Project Development Committee were created, with the ICRC mandated to chair the latter.
The inaugural meeting was attended by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, as well as representatives from the Federal Ministry of Water Resources, the Federal Ministry of Power, the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, the Cross River State Government and Ikom Power Limited.
Speaking at the meeting, the Director-General of the ICRC, Jobson Oseodion Ewalefoh, described the dam as a strategic infrastructure project designed to address several national priorities.
“The project is a multipurpose infrastructure intervention designed to control flood, provide renewable energy, optimise water resource availability and ensure regional economic development,” Ewalefoh said.
He explained that the committee would supervise the technical, regulatory and strategic processes required to move the project from concept stage to a bankable investment opportunity while ensuring public interest and credible private sector participation.
According to him, the next phase of the project will involve reviewing and validating existing feasibility and hydrological studies, clarifying the project scope, determining the most suitable PPP structure and risk allocation framework, and initiating the process for appointing a transaction adviser.
In his remarks, Edun emphasised the need to structure the project as a commercially viable and sustainable investment capable of attracting long-term private sector funding.
He added that the project aligns with the infrastructure development agenda of the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Members of the Project Development Committee include representatives from the Federal Ministries of Finance, Water Resources and Power, the Cross River State Government, the ICRC, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority and Ikom Power Limited.
The Ikom Multipurpose Dam is expected to generate about 250 megawatts of renewable baseload hydropower while helping to mitigate recurring flooding in parts of the Benue River Basin.
The project is also projected to enhance energy security, improve water resource management and stimulate economic growth in Cross River State and surrounding regions
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