Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them —William Shakespeare

On every occasion the power and energy sector in Nigeria is being discussed, one name that will not be misplaced is that of an administrator, banker, financial expert, power sector technocrat and consultant/lobbyist. He is the president and Chief Executive Officer of the Consultancy Dell’Amore International Limited, Alhaji Idris Danlami Mohammed, the Madakin Jen of Taraba State.

Idris began his career in 1984 as an Administrative Officer with the Federal Civil Service, Ikoyi. He left in 1986 to join the United Bank for Africa (UBA) as a Banking Officer and rose to the position of Branch Manager. Idris became the Head of Accounts and one of the pioneer set of Assistant General Manager, Finance and Administration and later Assistant General Manager, Finance and Accounts, a position he held for 11 years.
Through hard work and dedication to duty, Idris Danlami Mohammed was appointed the Managing Director of Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company by the Federal Government. He was last government’s managing director to formally hand over to private owners, North West Power.

He was also the first managing director to be appointed chief executive officer from finance sector in Nigeria’s power sector and the only managing director in Nigeria’s power sector to meet the Presidential mandate of providing uninterrupted power supply to customers as attested by the Honourable Minister of Power, Professor Chinedu Nebo and the Director-General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Mr Ben Dikkie at the time of handing over power to private owners North West Power on 4th December, 2014.

Idris holds a Master Degree in Banking and Finance from FINAFRICA Institute, Milan, Italy and he is a Fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM).

With over 33 years of service in Nigeria’s public sector, he spent 25 years in the power sector. He spent over 24 years at the National Electricity Power Authority (NEPA) and the Kaduna Electric, he later established Consultancy Dell’Amore International Limited, an independent power consultancy firm with strong business ties with China, the United Kingdom, Germany and Canada.
In recognition of his dedication, Idris was part of the presidential team that visited the Republic of China in 2016, where the delegation signed the Nigeria’s most ambitious coal fired power plant to generate 4,200 mw of power by a group of first class Chinese investors. The firm also entered into a partnership with the Kaduna State government to generate 100 megawatts of solar power plant and facilitated collaboration with a Chinese CCGCC group, the company has the largest hydro power plant in the world.

His stint at the Kaduna Electric recorded huge success. Out of his ingenuity and vision for the company, the Idris-led management teams were able to meet the presidential mandate of providing 24-hour stable power supply to consumers and were also instrumental to the new power sector policy shifts initiated by the Federal Government to boost power supply and access to power in Nigeria.

In a recent interview, Idris said: “When I was in Kaduna Electric, there was virtually no light in Kaduna, but as a result of my strong passion and desire to make a change, by the time I left the company in December 2014, during the handing over ceremony to the new owner, North West Power, the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) that handed over the company to the new owners confirmed that the status of power supply has increased in Kaduna and its environs. States like Kaduna, Zamfara, Sokoto and Kebbi were having 24 hours uninterrupted power supply. So we want to continue from that point to contribute significantly to develop Nigeria’s power sector.

“We also coordinated massive metering of customers and the programme was sustained. “And for the fact that our customers were happy they were metered, they paid their bills on time because there was no fear of estimated billings. “They were able to recharge their electricity and there was no more billing but fending system. “That singular action really changed the fortune of Kaduna Electric and we were able to generate about N1.25 billion revenue, and there was a time it moved up to N1.35 billion. That record, till today, has not been achieved in Kaduna Electric. I stand to be challenged.” he stated.

As a frontline member of the Embedded Generation team of the Federal Ministry of Power, Idris was able to bring in credible investors who are contributing hugely to power supply in Nigeria. His passion for stable power supply is unequalled. He attended a Powering Africa Summit in Washington DC, United States, in March 2017 as a guest speaker, where a letter of attention by investors for the Nigeria’s electricity market was presented; and the interest generated by the international investors in the message was so impressive to the extent that a special dinner was organised for first-class investors, who really want to invest in Nigeria’s electricity market, to have a one-on-one discussion with them and to give them useful information about the market. “So when we came back to Nigeria, around July, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, announced to the world that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) had approved a sum of N701 billion for the Power Sector Recovery Plan (PSRP),” he concluded.

Idris’ Consultancy Dell’Amore International Limited is the authorised Nigeria’s partner for the EnergyNet Limited, the company organises a global portfolio of energy forums, investment meetings, and collaborative dialogues focused on the power generation and industrial sectors across Africa and Latin America. For the last 23 years the company has worked in Europe, United States, and Republic of China and across Africa and Latin America to facilitate investment summits where international investors build relationships with credible public sector stakeholders. It focuses on core industry providers including private power developers, institutional investors, multilateral financial institutions, private equity investors, fund managers, commercial banks and development banks, law firms, NOCs and IOCs, LNG companies, consultants, engineering, procurement and construction firms, and immediate power providers to support contract delivery and project success.

Speaking further on the partnership, Idris said: “What we majorly do in EnergyNet and Dell’Almore is to bring in investors, who have solutions to Nigeria’s electricity problems, and once investors are on ground and those problems are solved, and the solutions are reliable and sustainable. Ours is to promote such business ventures, recommend them to the government and by doing that, we believe we are contributing to the development and availability of power supply in Nigeria. “So when government creates enabling and peaceful environment, we facilitate discussions between the government, the stakeholders and investors. We also appreciate the fact that our efforts are noticed and appreciated by the government.”

In recognition of Idris contribution to the power sector in Nigeria, Africa and across the world, EnergyNet Limited has concluded plans to honour Idris with a special ‘Recognition Award’ at the forthcoming 20th Anniversary of Africa Energy Forum (AEF) in Mauritius. AEF is a global investment meeting for Africa’s power, energy, infrastructure and industrial sectors and the summit is the longest running meeting for decision makers in Africa’s energy sector. This summit will bring together senior decision-makers active in Africa’s energy sector to form partnerships, identify opportunities and collectively move the industry forward. It has a loyal following of credible players working in the power space, and a track record of delivering a valuable networking experience. The summit will also celebrate 20 years of projects, deals and partnerships.

Accordingly, Idris and EnergyNet share similar values as regards energy access, the role of energy to underpin socio economic development and the creation of jobs for the many brilliant young men and women across the continent as well as active promotion of mutually respectful and beneficial relationship with credible stakeholders. These are milestones which three years ago we set to actualise. Interestingly, Consultancy Dell’Amore International Limited and EnergyNet have been appointed as Consultants to the Nigerian Embassy in Washington D.C, United States to identify credible investors that will work with the government to change the landscape of power sector in Nigeria.

“With these excellent qualities bestowed in a man we have all continue to cherish as a strategic partner informed his selection at this auspicious event of 20th edition of AEF, which will hold between 19 and 22 June, 2018 in Mauritius.
Commenting on the award, the Senior Marketing Manager of EnergyNet, Amy Offord, said: “Idris has constantly demonstrated time and again his passion, enthusiasm and commitment to promoting energy partnerships, working tirelessly to support Nigeria’s energy sector on the global stage which should be recognised by the Nigerian government. Idris is one of the most active and positive voices on the conference circuit – what is true is that Idris is a go-getter, when he focuses his sharp calculating mind and shares his vision with like minds to achieve a target, he rarely fails. This is reflected in his glittering career both in government, at the Kaduna Electric and now with Dell’Amore, and that is why at this year’s AEF, Idris is being recognised officially with a special ‘Recognition Award’ to celebrate his impact and tireless work promoting energy development in Nigeria.