Ossiomo Power says Ologbo vandalism has shut output for 10 months despite N182m CSR spend

Why Ossiomo Power's Ologbo plant has been offline since November 2025

Ossiomo Power has gone public with an operational crisis at its gas-fired plant in Ologbo, Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Area of Edo State. The company says repeated vandalism and illegal access to its gas plant have kept it from supplying electricity for about 10 months, even as it spent more than N182 million on corporate social responsibility projects in the host community in 2025.

Site engineer Ekwe Francis Chukwuma said the disruption began in November 2025, when youths led by a man named Felix Okotie allegedly occupied or blocked the gas station. The company also alleges that some of those youths have been working with Jiangsu Communication Clean Energy Technology Co. Ltd (CCETC), a Chinese firm it accuses of trying to gain unauthorised access to the same gas plant at the Ossiomo Industrial Park.

Ossiomo says the damage extends beyond the gas plant. It claims its 33kV transmission lines, which carry power from Ologbo toward Benin City and surrounding areas, have been severely vandalised. A company source speaking anonymously accused Osaretin Omorodion of being responsible for the line vandalism, while another accused Okotie of attacking two DSS officers deployed to the gas plant on 2 December 2025.

The company has appealed to government and security authorities to intervene, warning that its investment is at risk and that customers are being left in darkness. Efforts to reach the chairman of Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Council were unsuccessful, and the company's claims have not yet been independently confirmed.

Inside the Ossiomo–CCETC dispute and Edo's fragile power security

What Ossiomo's 10-month shutdown actually means

Ossiomo had supplied power to Ologbo from around early 2022, after the community was reportedly without electricity for more than six years following a Benin Electricity Distribution Company disconnection. Its 33kV corridor also links Ologbo to Benin City and surrounding areas, so an extended blockade and line vandalism removes both a source of supply and the means to deliver it. The result is that a functioning embedded power asset is sitting idle while parts of Edo lose service.

The CCETC allegation and what it suggests

The most serious accusation is that a Chinese contractor with an interest in the same industrial space is using local youths to control site access. One anonymous source alleged that when CCETC officials were stopped from entering, they called Okotie, who quickly mobilised youths to force access. That points to a dispute over physical control of the gas plant rather than a simple act of vandalism, but the claim remains unverified and CCETC has not publicly responded.

Why past impunity may be part of the risk

Ossiomo sources say the alleged attack on DSS personnel in December 2025 has not led to prosecution, and they describe a pattern of interference continuing without enforcement. The company also connects the current crisis to Ologbo's earlier history of vandalism, illegal meter bypassing and violent conflict under the previous BEDC supply arrangement. Where there is no visible consequence for violent obstruction, the incentive to repeat it persists.

The limits of CSR alone

The N182 million CSR contribution is substantial, but it has not prevented the blockade or protected the company's assets. The dispute shows that social investment does not automatically create a secure operating licence when unresolved claims over land, access and local control are present. Without enforceable protection and an agreed community framework, spending alone may not restore operations.

Next steps for Ossiomo, regulators and industrial customers

• For Ossiomo Power and its investors: Request a written security plan from the Edo State government and police command covering the Ologbo gas plant and the 33kV Benin City corridor, and submit documented incident reports tied to the 2 December 2025 DSS attack to support criminal complaints.
• For regulators: Power sector and security authorities should investigate the alleged vandalism of the 33kV lines and the alleged trespass at the Ossiomo Industrial Park, and confirm whether any prosecution has been opened against the named individuals. That is the only credible way to test the company's claims.
• For CCETC: Clarify its legal standing and access rights at the Ossiomo gas plant. If the allegations are false, a public response would reduce commercial and reputational exposure; silence leaves the dispute unresolved and the plant offline.