In a turn of events, the national power grid of Nigeria experienced a crippling collapse on Sunday, sending power generation plummeting to a mere 59.9 megawatts around noon.
This unprecedented incident, as reported by the Federal Ministry of Power, resulted in widespread blackouts across the nation.
Power distribution companies, grappling with the fallout, squarely blamed the grid collapse managed by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), a federal agency. Kaduna Disco and Abuja Electricity Distribution Plc were quick to confirm the impact on their regions, leaving states like Kaduna, Sokoto, Zamfara, and Kebbi in complete darkness.
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Abdulazeez Abdullahi, the Head of Corporate Communications at Kaduna Disco, assured customers that power would be restored once bulk supply is received at load centers within their franchise.
As the nation grappled with the blackout, TCN’s data showed a fluctuating recovery in power generation throughout the day.
From the low of 59.9MW at noon, the grid managed to climb back to 1,051.4MW by 6 pm.
This recent collapse echoes a similar incident on December 12, 2023, when the national grid suffered a system collapse, causing a drastic decline in power generation.
At that time, TCN engineers managed to restore the system after several hours of blackout.
Notably, Nigeria has been plagued by grid collapses, with a series of incidents in September of the previous year. Despite the government’s efforts to privatize aspects of the power sector in 2013, these recurring collapses persist, raising concerns among power consumers.
In response to the latest crisis, Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, convened a meeting with top management teams of power-generating and distribution companies. Adelabu acknowledged an improvement in power supply during the holidays but expressed concern over the recent downturn in the new year, attributing it to low gas supply to generating companies (Gencos).
To address the gas supply challenges and the liquidity issue, Adelabu pledged to form a committee involving all stakeholders.
The committee aims to provide recommendations for a more reliable and consistent power supply, signaling a commitment to resolving the persistent issues in Nigeria’s power sector.