Improving energy infrastructure in Nigeria

Nigeria

Festus Olaoye, CEO of Beam Energy, talks to The Energy Year about hurdles the Nigerian energy industry needs to overcome and what the company is doing to boost energy infrastructure in the country. Beam Energy is an engineering company that provides EPCI and maintenance services for all levels of the energy value chain.

What main challenges is the regional energy market facing?
There are three recurring challenges hampering development. The first is access to funding. Projects have not seen the light because we were unable to comply with the bank’s funding requirements. Another issue is insecurity and inconsistency in government policies. The last involves the global market, which has a substantial impact on national dynamics. The war between Russia and Ukraine and the energy transition crisis have put pressure on our economy.

What services does Beam Energy provide for the energy industry?
We started operations at Beam Energy 11 years ago. We provide EPCI and commissioning services for the construction, oil and gas, and power sectors. Our area of expertise lies in electrical, instrumentation, automation, mechanical and power infrastructures for the energy and industrial segments. We help our clients from the design phase all the way to the commissioning of projects and operations and maintenance activities.
We have been re-certified by the UKAS [United Kingdom Accreditation Service] and BV [Bureau Veritas] for our ISO 9001/2015 certification for quality management systems as well as OHSAS 45001:2018 occupational safety systems.

What projects has the company worked on?
Beam Energy Limited has been working with major multinationals for the past 10 years, as well as some of the DisCos [distribution companies] and GenCos [power generation companies]. Our major clients are Mobil, Chevron, Shell, TotalEnergies, NNPC, Eroton E&P and Newcross E&P.
We have been a reliable contractor of choice for Chevron for their electrical, instrumentation and power upgrades at all of their locations and facilities. We did upgrades of all Chevron 11-kV switchgear panels at Lekki, Gbagada and Warri. At Escravos, we just completed an electrical runway lighting system upgrade.
In the last two years, we have been provided electrical, instrumentation and mechanical equipment maintenance for both Shell and its assets, including the Sea Eagle and Bonga FPSOs, as well as for Chevron and its assets.
In the power sector, we have worked with numerous distribution companies, such as Eko Electricity, Ikeja Electric, Ibadan Electricity and Abuja Electricity. We have a two-year rapid response contract with Ikeja Electric that requires our expertise for maintenance on short notice in specific areas of the network. We are currently an EPC contractor providing 1 x 100-MVA 132/33-kV and 3 x 33-kV feeder bays from the TCN 132-kV transmission substation.
Concerning gas, we have an ongoing project for the AGPC [ANOH Gas Processing Company], a 50-50 joint venture between Seplat Energy and NGC/NNPC. They are developing a 300-mcf [8.50-mcm] per day gas processing plant from OML 53 operated by Seplat and another 300-mcf per day plant from SPDC from OML 21. We have supplied line pipes of 25,365 metres for both the OB3 pipeline and ANOH.

What differentiates Beam Energy from other players in the market?
Our focus is on becoming the leading engineering provider and first choice for our clients by delivering quality services in a safe manner at an affordable cost within schedule. We have been able to foresee the advancements of technology and the impact automation has on the future. Part of our expertise includes instrumentation, control, automation, mechanical and power infrastructure services.
We have great, dedicated human capital on our team, with experienced engineers and other professionals working in our smart offices. To stay ahead of the latest technological developments, we have secured partnerships with major equipment manufacturers such as Siemens, ABB and Schneider Electric for the design and assembly of electrical/control switchgears from 125A to 6300A according to IEC 61439-1-2 standards. We have an automated workshop for switchgear works and automation.

What services do you provide in terms of metering?
Whether it is for the power generation or oil and gas sector, metering is an important aspect for both residential and industrial segments. Generation and distribution companies often see disruptions regarding electricity consumption data. Our work on automation involves SCADA systems. This interface provides real-time metering data throughout the value chain that you can access from the office. It is a far more efficient monitoring system.
We can build the required control and electrical power panels in our workshop. The panels we use for the energy conservation and protection systems come from original equipment manufacturers that we have technical partnerships with.

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