Figures obtained on Monday from the Nigeria Electricity System Operator, an arm of the Federal Government’s power transmission company, showed that the national electricity grid actually crashed from a peak of 3,703 megawatts to as low as 9MW on Sunday.

Nigeria witnessed widespread blackout on Sunday after the national grid collapsed around 6.49pm, before engineers from the Transmission Company of Nigeria strived to ensure the recovery of the grid.

The PUNCH had reported on Monday that Sunday’s grid collapse was the fifth in 2022, a development that made many power distribution companies to shut down their various outgoing electricity feeders.

Data sourced from the NESO on Monday in Abuja, which showed the performance of the national grid on Sunday, indicated that the peak generation on Sunday of 3,703MW was recorded at 5am.

But this crashed to 9MW at 7pm on Sunday, according to the NESO, leading to the eventual collapse of the national grid.

Various Discos including Enugu Electricity Distribution Company Plc, Abuja Electricity Distribution Company, Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company, among others, had confirmed the grid collapse in various messages on Sunday night.

Although no official statement from TCN as per the grid collapse yet, it was gathered that its restoration reached an advanced stage on Monday, as power generation rose to 2,744.6MW around 6am on Monday.

Nigeria’s power grid had collapsed twice in March and twice again in April this year. Power generation on the system had continued to fluctuate due to various concerns such as gas constraints, water management challenges, gas pipeline vandalism, among others.

Following the instability in Nigeria’s power supply, experts and consumer groups in the sector urged politicians to desist from generating political megawatts as they woo voters ahead of the 2023 general elections.

“Stop generating political megawatts. Stop generating electric power on the pages of newspapers and social media,” an industry expert, who doubles as President, Nigeria Consumer Protection Network, Kunle Olubiyo, stated.

He added, “‘I will increase power generation from 5,000MW to 30,000MW’. How do you intend to do that? Please let us know. Nigeria presently has grid sourced power generation capacity of 7,500MW, but only an average of 3,600MW gets to the end-users.


“We also have 14,500MW installed generation capacity that our national energy quantum could be ramped up. There is available power on the grid that is usually rejected by the 11 electricity distribution companies and TCN.”

“Yet the nation have been permanently configured into a vicious circle of distribution of darkness and perpetual energy crises due to gas constraints, market settlement crises, tariff and market shortfall, near-zero regulatory ecosystem, grid infrastructural limitations, technical deficits and broadly speaking – grid constraints.”

Olubiyi said why was it that since December 2021, the power supply situation in Nigeria had gone beyond comprehension and most embarrassingly unpleasant.

The consumer group president urged the presidential candidates of the frontline political parties to speak straight to the fundamental issues “and tell Nigerians how they will address the root causes of energy crises in Nigeria.”

“And not by making bogus promises and claims as per the electricity sector. We need to be informed in specific terms how they intend to address the challenges bedeviling the power sector.”

The spokesperson for the Electricity Consumers Association of Nigeria, Chijioke James, told The PUNCH that electricity consumers across the country were not happy with the low power supply.

“Of course, we are not satisfied. Consumers want to have a steady and reliable power supply. We have not seen a remarkable improvement in electricity supply across the country, and consumers are not satisfied”, he said

tommy589:
Prepaid metre has released me from monthly scam

incandescentena:
Same news consistent bad news under this failed APC government.

We didn't have it this bad until the emergence of this retrogress APC folks

pendy79:
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, on Sunday evening boasted that he could provide uninterrupted power supply to Lagos residents between six and eight months.

Fashola spoke at the commissioning of 8.5 megawatts Lekki Independent Power Project (IPP), the fifth of such power projects in the last five years in the state.

The governor said the addition of the Lekki IPP was a testament to the fact that stable power does not require rocket science to achieve in the country.

While challenging power distribution companies in the state, Fashola said, “Let the Eko DISCOs sign a contract with me, giving part of their concessioning to the state government, in about six to eight months, there will be power in all homes in Lagos State,” Fashola said.

He added, “So, let no one say that he has no money to deliver power for the entire country. This is the limit to which the law allows us to do, but we have done this to make a statement that power can be generated. So, when they come with lies that power is impossible, you can tell them that we have power here; we make it possible”.

The project, courtesy of the state government, in partnership with Heritage Bank, is to serve Lagos State Water Corporations in Lekki Phase 1, Oniru, Victoria Island and Ikoyi, as well as over 25km of public lightening in the Lekki axis.

Commissioning the project, Fashola said he felt fulfilled with the conduct of youths that delivered the project, despite the difficulties in getting to the finishing point.

He said it also showed that the money to improve the Nigerian economy is here, “since we don’t need the World Bank to come and do this for us.”

Also, General Manager, Lagos State Electricity Board, Damilola Ogunbiyi, said the state had shown that reliable and sustainable power projects are possible through the youths.

Ogunbiyi said though it had been a successful story, the state was just scratching the surface in its “aggressive development plan” in the area of power.

Promoter of the project, Faruk Agoro noted that the new IPP was an innovative idea of world-class natural gas-fired power generating facility, sold to the government by youths and it was bought into, to support government institutions, especially in the area of water supply and security.

The Lekki IPP is 8.5 megawatts, with the capacity for 30 megawatts.

This brings the Lagos IPPS to a total of 47 megawatts of electricity in total, powering several public institutions around the state.

The generated megawatts is however still a far cry from the over 10, 000 megawatts power deficit in the state.

On his part, the State Commissioner in the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Taofeek Tijani, said the new addition was about continuity in public infrastructure programme of the state government

http://dailyindependentnig.com/2015/03/can-provide-stable-power-eight-months-fashola-boasts/

helinues:
When it didn't crash, was there stable electricity?

Hian

Figures obtained on Monday from the Nigeria Electricity System Operator, an arm of the Federal Government’s power transmission company, showed that the national electricity grid actually crashed from a peak of 3,703 megawatts to as low as 9MW on Sunday.