Nigeria experienced its fourth electricity grid collapse of the year on Saturday afternoon, resulting in a nationwide blackout and a dramatic dip in power generation. This latest collapse underscores ongoing challenges in the country’s power sector, which has been deemed crucial for economic development by Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
At 6:07 pm on Saturday, power generation plummeted to a mere 57 megawatts, a steep decline from nearly 4,000 megawatts recorded earlier at around 8 am. Data reviewed by THISDAY from the Independent System Operator (ISP), a division of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), revealed this significant drop. A statement from the TCN was still awaited as of last night.
In May, the TCN reported a 76.47% reduction in grid disturbances and collapses, citing 105 incidents between 2015 and April 2024. Despite these claims, the latest incident reflects the persistent instability of Nigeria’s power grid.
The grid collapse began with power plants shutting down around 2 pm, reducing output to 2,797.16 megawatts. This further dwindled to 1,020.08 megawatts by 3 pm and then to a mere 0.80 megawatts by 4 pm.
Several power distribution companies informed their customers of the outage, attributing it to the grid collapse and assuring them of efforts to restore electricity. The Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) confirmed the system failure at 3:10 pm and pledged to work with stakeholders to stabilize the grid.
Similarly, the Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company expressed regret over the outage affecting its franchise states, attributing it to the national grid collapse. They assured customers that power would be restored once the grid was stabilized.
The Enugu Electricity Distribution Company PLC (EEDC) also reported a general system failure at 15:09 hours, affecting supply in Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, and Imo states. The company is awaiting further details from the National Control Centre (NCC) in Osogbo.
By 7 pm, THISDAY observed that power was gradually being restored in some parts of Abuja.
In the midst of these developments, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu emphasized the importance of the power sector for economic growth during a visit to the Power House, the office of the Minister of Power, Mr. Adebayo Adelabu. Sanwo-Olu urged ministry officials to enhance their performance, highlighting that no development can occur without a robust power sector.
“The power sector is critical for economic turnaround and the development of the country. You must therefore constantly improve on your performance,” Sanwo-Olu stated, according to a statement by the minister’s spokesman, Bolaji Tunji.
