Electricity returns after nationwide blackouts in Nigeria
Electricity has been partially restored after a total blackout across Nigeria on Thursday, as the country’s electricity distribution companies reported “a total system collapse”.
Reports said the collapse was caused by a fire on a major transmission line, causing widespread blackouts across Nigeria before power slowly started to return.
Adebayo Adelabu, minister for power, said fire had caused an explosion on a transmission line connecting the Kainji and Jebba power plants in north central Niger state, tripping the grid.
“The fire has been fully arrested and over half of the connections are now up and the rest will be fully restored in no time,” Adelabu said in a statement.
Power generation fell to zero in the early hours but had risen to 1,341 megawatts (MW) by 1400 GMT, still well below the daily average of 4,100 MW, data from the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) showed.
TCN did not respond to a request for comment.
Grid power is erratic in Nigeria, a major oil and gas producer, forcing households and businesses including oil firms and manufacturers to resort to diesel and petrol generators.
The grid collapsed at least four times in 2022, which authorities blamed on technical problems.
Nigeria has 12,500 MW of installed capacity but produces about a quarter of that.
Share your thoughts on the story Electricity returns after nationwide blackouts in Nigeria with NigerianSketch in the comments section below.
