The Federal Government has projected that Nigeria could earn nearly $1bn (about N1.49tn) annually from electricity exports to 15 West African countries beginning June 2026.
The earnings are tied to the full utilisation of a 600-megawatt export capacity at the prevailing regional tariff, as Nigeria positions itself for full participation in the West African power market following a major grid synchronisation exercise carried out this month.
Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, disclosed the revenue prospect at a press briefing on Wednesday in Abuja, where he confirmed that Nigeria successfully undertook a grid synchronisation test with the 15 ECOWAS member states for four hours on November 8, 2025.
He said the development places Nigeria in a strong position to maximise its strategic advantage as the regional power hub under the West African Power Pool, particularly as local generation companies continue to improve compliance with free-governor control, a requirement essential for grid stability across borders.
The test, conducted between 05:04 a.m. and 09:04 a.m. on November 8, linked Nigeria’s national grid, which already includes the Niger Republic and parts of Benin and Togo, to the rest of the interconnected West African systems spanning Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau and Mali.
For the entire four-hour window, power moved smoothly across the region at a unified, steady frequency, demonstrating West Africa’s readiness to operate as a single, harmonised electricity market for the first time.
Adelabu said plans are underway for permanent synchronisation by June 2026, with a 48-hour test run expected once discussions with regional operators are finalised.
Edmund Eje, Executive Director of Market Operations at the Nigerian Independent System Operator, noted that Nigeria currently earmarks 600MW daily for bilateral power trade agreements. Data from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission show that Nigeria maintains the lowest electricity tariffs in West Africa, with an approved average end-user rate of $0.07/kWh (about N100.27/kWh).
This represents roughly 35.71 per cent of the regional average tariff of $0.19/kWh applied in several neighbouring countries.
If exported power is sold at the prevailing regional rate, officials estimate that delivering the entire 600MW allocation could yield almost $1bn annually. By calculation, exporting 600MW (or 600,000 kilowatts) at $0.19 per kilowatt-hour would generate about $114,000 per hour — approximately $2.73m daily and around $998.6m a year.
The projection is based on uninterrupted delivery once permanent synchronisation is achieved in June 2026, with government officials describing the revenue as a potential boost for the power sector to reduce liquidity gaps and promote regional market expansion.
Adelabu assured that electricity exports would not compromise domestic supply. He highlighted that this latest synchronisation attempt is the most successful since 2007, when a similar trial failed after just seven minutes.
Hi e said, “The benefits of synchronisation with other WAPP countries would extend directly to the Nigerian people. A more stable grid improves the performance of essential services such as hospitals, water supply, transport systems, digital infrastructure, and public institutions.
“As ongoing transmission expansion projects, including the North-Core line, the Ajegunle 330 kV Substation, the Kaduna–Kano transmission upgrades, and the Gwagwalada–Gurara connection, are completed, synchronisation will help deliver more reliable power to homes and industries nationwide. While expectations must remain realistic, this achievement provides the structural foundation for the improvements Nigerians have long awaited.”**
He further revealed that Nigeria’s transmission wheeling capacity has increased to 8,500MW, giving the country a stronger backbone for future export commitments.
Despite this, low demand from electricity distribution companies has kept actual power generation at about 5,000MW, leaving an estimated 3,500MW stranded in the system. The industry recorded an all-time generation peak of 5,801.44MW earlier in the year.
He said, “Today, the minimum grid capacity we can even communicate is 8,500MW of capacity. If our generation reaches 8,000MW today, the grid can comfortably and conveniently transmit it. We are even sure that it is higher than that, but it is put at a conservative level, at 8,500 MW.
“We have the capacity and the facility to generate more power in Nigeria, and investment is still open to interested power sector investors. As long as there is demand in the other 14 countries of West Africa, Nigeria can easily export energy to those countries.”
Speaking earlier at NISO’s maiden stakeholders’ engagement tagged “Building a Resilient and Competitive Electricity Market – The Role of NISO,” Managing Director Abdul Mohammed said the successful synchronisation goes beyond a technical milestone.
NISO’s Executive Director for System Operation, Nafisatu Ali, also announced that 60 per cent of Nigeria’s power plants have now adopted free-governor control, significantly enhancing the nation’s preparedness for cross-border power trade. She said compliance has risen from about 20 per cent previously to 60 per cent following NERC’s directive.
Ali explained that the improvement was evident during the synchronisation test, noting that “a generator tripped in Côte d’Ivoire, and Nigerian generators responded automatically, maintaining stability.”
She added that “The intention is to achieve 100 per cent compliance. This system has already improved grid resilience, ensuring automatic responses whenever there is a tripping event.”
Free-governor control enables power plants to adjust their output instantly when there are frequency disturbances triggered by sudden demand spikes or generator failures, maintaining grid balance without manual intervention.
With improved compliance, Nigeria’s generation companies can now provide automatic stability support, reducing system instability and boosting investor confidence in the electricity market.
