- Nigerian National Grid Faces Persistent Instability as Delta Power Plant Remains Sole Operational Source.
- Grid Failures Continue to Plague Nigeria’s Power Sector Despite Billions in Loans for Grid Enhancement.
In Nigeria, only the Delta Power plant was generating power at noon, producing 41MW, with Afam contributing an additional 1.7MW. This incident highlights another episode of grid instability, occurring just five days after two separate power failures left the country without electricity.
Therefore, Data from the National System Operator showed that as of 5 pm, the Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, was still battling to restore the grid as supply rose to 246MW with Afam VI (1.6MW), Ibom Power (70MW), Olorunsogo Plant (58.6MW), Omotosho Plant (67.9MW), and Trans-Amadi (47.7MW), the plants on the grid.
Nigeria secured loans exceeding $7.5 billion from various international lenders, including the World Bank, African Development Bank (AfDB), Japan, and the French Development Agency, to enhance the transmission network and strengthen the grid’s capacity. Despite these investments, stakeholders argue that persistent management challenges reminiscent of pre-privatization practices, widespread corruption, political considerations, infrastructure misalignment, and the DisCos’ inability to increase their off-taking capacity, among other factors, have rendered these financial efforts ineffective.
While Generation Companies (GenCos) and Distribution Companies (DisCos) have voiced concerns about the impact of grid failures on their machinery and revenue, the current situation also violates the contract between TCN and the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), which mandates the transmission of a minimum of 5,000MW through the grid under the Service Based Tariff (SBT).