Nigeria’s national electricity grid collapsed again on Wednesday, resulting in major cities going dark. The incident – occurred between 11:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. – saw generation levels plummet from 2,917.83 MW to just 1.5 MW.
The Abuja Electricity Distribution Company confirmed the grid failure in a public notice at 11:23 a.m. announcing total blackout status for it’s areas since 11:00 a.m. Distribution companies in Lagos, Port Harcourt, Kaduna and other cities confirmed that their supply dropped to zero. Only the Ibadan area remained with standby voltage levels.
DisCos said they were working with the Grid operator and would restore supply when the grid stabilized, and thus asked that customers exhibit patience. The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) acknowledged the failure and said they are working on restoring supply, but have yet to provide a timeline to mark the end of the blackout.
The collapse adds to the ongoing failures in Nigeria’s challenged power system. The national grid has collapsed at least 12 times in 2024 alone. Experts state that aged infrastructure, insufficient maintenance practices, vandalism to physical assets and inadequate investments are ongoing root challenges to power stability. A number of generating plants produce electrical power that cannot be transmitted efficiently, due to bottlenecks in network distribution.
Immediately following the collapse, social media surged with public outrage. #NationalGrid and #LightUpNigeria were some of the trending hashtags as light users expressed frustration with the ongoing blackouts and rising costs of alternative energy. For many households and businesses, reliance on diesel and petrol generators is becoming increasingly untenable given already rising fuel costs.
Energy analysts are warning that without significant reforms, Nigeria’s precarious power sector will continue to hamper economic growth. While off-grid solar systems are becoming more popular, they remain out of reach for most people due to high costs and limited services.
The blackout is yet another sign of the critical need for fundamental change. Reliable electricity is critical for industrialization, healthcare, education and quality of life.
Until the root cause of the systemic failure of infrastructure in its power sector is addressed, Nigerian citizens should brace up for more grid failures and nationwide blackouts.