SEVERAL cities across Nigeria have been plunged into darkness once again as the nation’s electricity grid collapsed.
The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN)-managed grid went down at approximately 11:51 a.m. on Sunday, February 4, reducing the system’s capacity from 2,407 megawatts to a mere 31MW by noon and reaching zero by 1 p.m.
The reasons behind the grid collapse are still unclear, as there has been no official communication from the TCN on the development.
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The ICIR reported several grid collapses in the past years, a concern that has not been effectively addressed.
Despite the Federal Government privatizing the sector over eleven years ago, the grid remains unreliable, failing consumers on more than 141 occasions.
Distribution companies are already alerting customers about the situation, even as the generation companies have repeatedly expressed concerns over the impact on the safety and durability of their equipment.
Kaduna Electric confirmed that the loss of bulk power supply left Kaduna, Sokoto, Zamfara, and Kebbi states in darkness.
Also, the management of Abuja Electricity Distribution PLC has informed its customers that the power outage being experienced is a result of a system failure from the national grid today, which resulted in a nationwide outage.
According to the system operator’s platform, all 20 power plants, except Ibom Power with 31 megawatts, were offline by 11:51 a.m.
Harrison Edeh is a journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, always determined to drive advocacy for good governance through holding public officials and businesses accountable.