The nationwide power crisis being experienced in the country worsened on Thursday, with a total system collapse as the Minister of Power reassuring Nigerians that the 10,000 megawatts of electricity generation target set by the administration would be attained by the end of 2019.
Babatunde Fashola - Minister of Power
It was widely reported that Nigeria’s power generation collapsed to zero megawatt around 1:00pm on Thursday, and the situation lasted for about three hours.
According to data from the country’s system operator, the Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, showed that no power generation company produced a single megawatt of electricity throughout that period.
Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, said the sudden downing of the three turbines at the Jebba Hydro power station was responsible for the situation, adding that the power in the country was inadequate and that the faulty turbines had been fixed.
"Yesterday morning, we had some outages in Jebba. I have just been informed now that out of all the four turbines that were down, three have been restored, so there is stability now.
"There is not enough power in the country and how do you share what is not enough? It’s difficult, if not impossible. What we need to do is to get more power on."
The former Lagos governor said the challenges will not prevent the current administration from fulfilling its promise of generating 10,000 megawatts, adding that he has resolved the dispute between Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) and Geometric Power Limited.
Prior to the development, the two companies were in contention over who would supply power to Aba and its environs.
Fashola described the truce between as a historic achievement in the sector, expressing appreciation to Vice-President Yemi Osinbanjo, whom he said initiated the process of settling the dispute six months ago.
He said the people at Aba and Ariaria markets would now have electricity to boost their businesses. He also said that though there were challenges due to vandalism and theft of power equipment, the industry’s future was still bright.
Fashola explained that the 200 megawatts of power generated by Geometric would add to the available power in the country.
Fashola’s predecessor, Bartholomew Nnaji, who witnessed the signing of agreement between the companies, expressed gratitude to the president, vice president and the permanent secretary in the ministry for their efforts in resolving the dispute out of court.
Tokunbo Kayode, also a former Minister of Power, said the signing of the agreement will fast track development in Aba and its environs.
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