Governor of Enugu State, Dr. Peter Mbah, has announced bold plans to generate at least 1,000 megawatts of power from the state’s coal deposits, stressing that the resource would not be treated as a stranded asset without adequate compensation. He also disclosed that Enugu Air would take delivery of six additional aircraft before the end of the year, while tourism and infrastructure projects were being expanded to attract three million visitors annually.
Speaking in Lagos on Thursday at the Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce (NBCC) “Meet the Governor Series,” where he presented a business case for investing in Enugu, Mbah explained that Enugu coal is of premium quality with minimal sulphur content, making it highly suitable for power generation with reduced environmental risks.
“We cannot treat our coal as a stranded asset, particularly the Enugu coal, which is a premium coal. Our target is to see how we can use our coal to generate at least 1000 megawatts of power. We do have technology today that makes coal utilisation less adverse to the environment. Essentially, that is the direction for us.
Coal deposits in Enugu have less than 0.5 per cent sulphur content. For a lot of coal, if you have 1.0 per cent you are still okay. But we have 0.5 per cent. Our coal is also very good to fire power plants due to its high calorific value. So, we are on that and we are not going to warehouse our coal resources.
However, if we have to warehouse or treat coal as a stranded asset, then there has to be a conversation on compensation,” he said.
The governor also highlighted his administration’s security strides, noting that the state had cut crime by over 80 per cent through strategic investment in security infrastructure.
“Businesses are not designed to absorb security challenges. So, we have to get that out of the way. That is why we invested hugely in the area of security to build infrastructures that will enable us to defeat criminal activities. Today, in Enugu we have reduced crime rate by over 80 per cent,” Mbah said.
He further revealed that tourism and hospitality were at the heart of Enugu’s economic growth plan, citing the completion of the Enugu International Conference Centre (ICC), which hosted 20,000 participants during the 2025 Nigerian Bar Association Annual General Conference. The adjoining ICC 5-Star Hotel, he added, would be delivered soon.
“Enugu naturally lends itself to tourism. We are building the Cross of Hope, which is something we want to put in place to attract religious tourism. The highest point in Enugu State is about 580 metres above sea level, and we are bringing a massive cross of about 100 metres to put on its highest point.
“Our plan is to bring in three million visitors. So, we worked with an investor to get the concessioning of the Akanu Ibiam International Airport. Hopefully, the international wing of the airport will be operational by the first quarter of 2026. We are also investing to build the cargo terminal.
“We are looking at bringing in additional six aircraft for Enugu Air for the Christmas season. We are obviously going to expand very quickly because we have surpassed our projections within one month of operation,” he said.
Mbah added that by 2026, the state would have four branded hotels to cater to the expected tourism boom.
“If you are expecting three million visitors, hotels will be on huge demand,” he stated.
In his welcome remarks, NBCC President, Mr. Abimbola Olashore, praised Mbah’s leadership and vision, describing Enugu as “a state on the move.”
“We have seen bold steps in digital governance, in infrastructure expansion, and in creative public-private partnerships. Each of these signals a state that is not waiting for the future, but actively shaping it,” Olashore said.
Also speaking, the British Deputy High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr. Jonny Baxter, said the UK-Nigeria trade relationship had reached £7.9 billion, the highest on record, with the United Kingdom accounting for 65 per cent of all foreign direct investment (FDI) flows into Nigeria.
“Nigeria is the United Kingdom’s second largest trading partner in Africa and its largest export market, and in February 2024, we signed something called the Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership, which is about trying to make trade smoother between our two countries. It is the first of its kind that we have signed with an African country, and in fact it is the second globally, the first being with India. So, we certainly hope for the same sort of trajectory between us and Nigeria,” Baxter explained.
He added that under the UK’s Developing Countries Trading Scheme, over 90 per cent of Nigeria’s exports to the UK would enter duty-free.
“All the normal taxes are taken off those items exported from here and imported into the UK. But one of the key obstacles is often standards. That is why we are working with Nigerian standards authorities to help Nigerian companies raise the standards, because once you are meeting British standards, you are meeting European standards, you are meeting American standards — you have got a much bigger market to export to,” Baxter concluded.
