Nigeria’s national grid has suffered its second collapse in less than 48 hours, causing widespread blackouts across the country.
The latest incident occurred at approximately 11:28 a.m. on Thursday, marking the 10th grid collapse recorded in 2024.
The series of repeated outages has left Nigerians frustrated, highlighting ongoing issues with the nation’s power infrastructure.
According to data from the Independent System Operator (ISO), an autonomous division of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), the grid was supplying only 3.7 megawatts of electricity by noon on Thursday.
This sharply contrasts with the usual power generation, which averaged around 2,709.45 megawatts as of 11:00 a.m. the same day, underscoring the severe nature of the outage.
As of the time of filing this report, the TCN had yet to provide an official explanation for the latest grid collapse.
The ongoing grid failures have spurred concerns over the stability and reliability of Nigeria’s power supply.
The Jos Electricity Distribution Company (JEDC) confirmed the outage, attributing the disruption within its service areas to the grid’s breakdown.
“The loss of power supply from the national grid occurred this morning at about 11:28 hours of today, Thursday, 7th November 2024, hence the loss of power supply on all our feeders,” JEDC stated.
The company further assured its customers, saying, “We hope to restore normal power supply to our esteemed customers as soon as the grid supply is restored back to normalcy.”
Frequent Grid Failures Spark Outrage Among Nigerians, Demand for Accountability Grows
Nigerians are expressing deep frustration following yet another disruption in the national power grid on Thursday, the tenth this year and the second within just 48 hours.
The collapse, recorded at approximately 11:29 a.m., has further shaken public confidence in the country’s power infrastructure, leading to calls for immediate reforms and accountability.
Reacting to the latest incident, Chukwuemeka Orogbu, a civil servant, criticized the recurrent outages, highlighting that “the high frequency of these failures exposes the fundamental weaknesses within Nigeria’s power infrastructure.”
Orogbu added that businesses, especially in key sectors, are bearing the brunt of these repeated breakdowns, which impede economic growth. He voiced the sentiment shared by many Nigerians, who are increasingly using social media to demand accountability and urgent action from the government.
According to Orogbu, the systemic collapses underscore the fragility of Nigeria’s transmission and distribution systems, calling into question the effectiveness of current power policies and sector management.
He urged the government to prioritize grid modernization, enhance infrastructure maintenance, and support decentralized power solutions to alleviate the load on the national grid. “The government should also encourage private sector participation to drive efficiency improvements,” he emphasized.
Dennis Tyehimba, a welder in Abuja’s Mararaba area, echoed this frustration, stating that “Nigerians are tired of hearing about grid collapses.” He argued that the constant disruptions are crippling micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), such as his welding business, and called for the resignation of officials overseeing the grid system.
The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) confirmed the disturbance in a statement by Ndidi Mbah, TCN’s General Manager for Public Affairs. Mbah explained that the incident stemmed from a sudden frequency spike, rising from 50.33Hz to 51.44Hz, which necessitated a shutdown to avoid further complications. She assured the public that recovery efforts commenced immediately, restoring the Abuja axis within 28 minutes, though full restoration is still ongoing.
Mbah attributed the frequency spike to issues at one of the substations, which required an immediate shutdown. She outlined the TCN’s ongoing repair and upgrade projects, including critical work on the 330kV transmission lines along the Shiroro–Mando axis, major upgrades at the Jebba Transmission Substation, and efforts to restore the second Ugwuaji–Apir 330kV transmission line.
She further noted that the TCN has started implementing recommendations from a recent investigative report on past grid failures. “These efforts include technical upgrades and strategic interventions aimed at strengthening the transmission system’s resilience,” Mbah explained, adding that the TCN is committed to minimizing disruptions during this period of critical repairs and improvements.
Acknowledging the public’s concerns, Mbah stated, “We understand the impact of these disruptions and ask for patience as we work to improve grid stability.” She reaffirmed the TCN’s dedication to enhancing the reliability of electricity supply, which she described as vital for Nigeria’s socio-economic development.
