Grid collapse

By Uzair Adam 

The national grid has collapsed once again, plunging most parts of the country into darkness.

Power generation, which stood at 2,917.83 megawatts (MW), dropped drastically to 1.5 MW between 11:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. on Wednesday.

Confirming the development, the Nigeria National Grid, via its X handle, announced that “System restoration is in progress.”

In another update, the account disclosed that all electricity distribution companies (DisCos) across the country, except Ibadan DisCo, recorded zero allocation of power.

“Disco load” refers to the amount of power (in megawatts) allocated from the national grid to each distribution company.

Meanwhile, the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) in a statement appealed to its customers for patience, assuring them that efforts were ongoing to stabilise the grid.

The statement read, “Dear Valued Customers, please be informed that the power outage currently being experienced is due to a loss of supply from the national grid at 11:23 hrs today, affecting electricity supply across our franchise areas.

“Rest assured, we are working closely with the relevant stakeholders to ensure power is restored once the grid is stabilised. Thank you for your patience and understanding.”

By Uzair Adam

The national electricity grid in Nigeria remains vulnerable to frequent collapses due to the government’s inability to repair a critical transmission line in the northern region, hindered by persistent insecurity.

Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, disclosed this during the 2025 budget defense session with the Senate Joint Committee on Power.

Adelabu emphasized the consequences of the damaged Shiroro-Kaduna-Mando transmission line, which has been out of service since it was vandalized in October 2024.

“The Kaduna-Shiroro-Mando line was one of two major lines transmitting power to the north. The other line, Ugwuaji-Makurdi, was also vandalized but has since been repaired.

“However, the Shiroro-Mando-Kaduna line remains down due to security challenges,” Adelabu stated.

He highlighted that the reliance on a single transmission line has left the grid fragile and prone to collapse under strain.

Adelabu further noted that while the government cannot entirely prevent grid collapses, efforts are focused on minimizing their frequency and ensuring rapid restoration.

He acknowledged the collaboration with the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), led by Nuhu Ribadu, as crucial in combating vandalism, one of the sector’s most significant challenges.

The minister announced a proposed N2 trillion budget for the ministry and its agencies in 2025, with N229 billion allocated to the ministry itself.

He also unveiled a N700 billion allocation for the Power Metering Initiative (PMI), targeting the reduction of the metering gap by next month to enhance billing transparency and curb fraud.

“We are committed to reducing the restoration time after full or partial grid collapses and are working closely with security agencies to address the underlying issues,” Adelabu said.

In addition, the ministry plans to invest N36 billion in distributing transformers across the six geopolitical zones and has proposed the installation of solar lights and CCTV cameras on highways to monitor and deter vandals.

The security-focused proposal falls under a N200 billion sub-head in the 2025 budget.

The minister reaffirmed the government’s determination to secure critical infrastructure and improve power supply across the country.