Why fixing Nigeria’s electricity challenges may take long time – Expert

Adetunji Adeyeye, an energy expert, has said addressing Nigeria’s electricity problems may take a longer time to happen.

Mr Adeyeye, a former regulatory specialist at the Nigeria Association of Electricity Distributors, spoke on Wednesday when he appeared as a guest on Arise TV’s The Morning Show.

Electricity challenges

There have been frequent cases of national grid collapse, resulting in blackouts across many Nigerian states.

Last week, the Association of Power Generation Companies announced that the country had recorded 162 cases of grid collapse from 2013 to date.

There have been over six cases of grid collapse in 2024 alone, with the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission saying it would conduct an investigative public hearing to “find a permanent resolution”.

‘It’s a political statement’

But speaking on a TV programme, Mr Adeyeye described the promise to permanently solve grid collapse as “a political statement.”

He said the challenges in Nigeria’s power sector could not be addressed quickly.

The expert stressed that the country’s recurring electricity challenges were due to years of inadequate maintenance of the national grid.

“You don’t fix a problem without knowing the root cause. Our infrastructure has been inadequately maintained. They are old and dilapidated. There has been no adequate investment in the power sector. So, all these problems cannot be fixed so quickly in two weeks,” he said.

“What we can do quickly is to probably render band-aid to stop bleeding- like first aid treatment. But to solve electricity problems in Nigeria to make sure we have availability, accessibility will unfortunately take some time to come.”

What can be done

Mr Adeyeye said permanently solving Nigeria’s electricity challenges will require a number of actions.

“To have availability and accessibility of electricity, the federal government should be doing all necessary issues such as continuous investments in terms of expanding and strengthening the networks, combating energy theft, putting monitoring systems in place and backing them up with policies both regulatory and government policies,” he said.

Continuing, the expert said he agreed with the country’s Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, that there was a need to decentralise the grid to provide alternative pathways for energy distribution.

The challenge with Electricity Act

In June 2024, President Bola Tinubu signed an electricity bill into law, authorising states, companies, and individuals to generate, transmit, and distribute electricity.

But Mr Adeyeye said states would need to localise the legislation and set up an agency responsible for distribution and regulation of power in their states.

“It is not a quick win for state governors if they think that the electricity act will bring power supply to the people,” he said.

“So, while we should explore the Electricity Act, the focus of the federal government must still be on investing in and revamping the national grid. That’s the overriding objective or solution that I will be pushing at this point,” the expert added.