Nigeria’s grid supply plunged to 675MW on Monday after multiple power plants went offline, prompting distribution companies to warn customers of supply constraints.
Nigeria’s national grid supply plunged by 81.5%, from 3,647 megawatts (MW) to 675 megawatts (MW) on Monday afternoon as nine power plants went offline.
Data from the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) showed that plants fell from 21 to 12. The decline represented a loss of 2,972MW within one hour.
The disruption prompted electricity distribution companies, including Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) and Ikeja Electric, to notify customers of reduced supply.
According to The Punch, the incident followed multiple trips on the 330-kilovolt transmission network. NISO later announced that it had stabilised the grid and restored normal operations.
Grid Supply Drops After Multiple Plant Outages
NISO data showed that 21 power plants were supplying electricity to the grid before the disruption. However, the number fell to 12 by 1pm as generation dropped sharply.
The affected plants included Azura, Egbin, Jebba and Kainji. The incident followed stronger supply levels earlier that morning, when generation reached 4,458MW at 6am.
Supply subsequently declined to 3,647MW by noon before plunging to 675MW an hour later.
By 5pm, generation had recovered to 2,150MW. Although this represented an improvement of 1,475MW from the 1pm level, supply remained well below the morning peak.
DisCos Notify Customers of Supply Constraints
Following the disruption, AEDC informed customers that a grid-related challenge had interrupted electricity supply from the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).
The distribution company said TCN’s technical team was working to stabilise the grid. It also reported that electricity supply was gradually returning to its feeders.
Similarly, Ikeja Electric attributed reduced supply across its network to lower electricity allocations from the national grid.
The company said it was engaging relevant stakeholders to improve available supply. Meanwhile, it pledged to distribute the electricity received as efficiently and equitably as possible.
NISO Announces Grid Stabilisation
In a statement, NISO said multiple trips on the 330kV transmission network triggered the incident at approximately 12:40pm on October 19, 2026.
The operator said it immediately implemented corrective measures with TCN to stabilise the power system and restore normal operations.
NISO subsequently confirmed that restoration efforts had been completed and the grid had returned to normal operation.
It also clarified that the incident affected only part of the grid, contradicting unverified reports suggesting a wider disruption.