Electricity distribution companies have apologised to Nigerians over the persistent power outages across the country, admitting that the prolonged shortages in recent weeks have caused significant hardship for households and businesses.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors, Sunday Oduntan, offered the apology on Monday while speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily.
“I’d like to first of all start by apologising to Nigerians. Apology is needed; it is essential because Nigerians have been taken through this problem over the past few weeks,” he said.
Oduntan expressed concern over the renewed disagreements among stakeholders in the electricity sector, warning that the industry was returning to the blame game that characterised its operations between 2016 and 2019.
According to him, distribution companies, transmission operators, generation companies and gas suppliers had previously shifted responsibility for poor electricity supply among themselves rather than jointly addressing the challenges.
“Our major problem is that we have started that very wrong route that we went through between 2016 and 2019. What is that? Blame game.
“Part of what happened at that time is that people will blame the DisCos, DisCos will blame TCN, TCN will blame GenCos, GenCos will blame the gas suppliers, and gas suppliers will blame payment issues. We have returned to that, and I think there is a need to arrest that,” he said.
Oduntan questions conflicting explanations
The ANED chief also faulted what he described as conflicting explanations from the Nigerian Independent System Operator and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited regarding the causes of the electricity crisis.
He said NISO had identified low water levels and insufficient gas supply as factors contributing to the shortages, while the NNPC later issued a statement indicating that gas was available.
Oduntan questioned the oil company’s explanation, arguing that it needed to provide details on whether payment challenges were affecting gas deliveries to power generation companies.
“From the NNPC statement, it is very clear that they came to tell us half-truths. What I would have expected NNPC to do is to go ahead and talk to us whether there are payment issues. We need to know whether gas was paid for and delivered, who did, who didn’t,” he said.
He called on the Minister of Power to assume a leadership role by convening stakeholders to determine the actual causes of the persistent outages.
“This back and forth blame game between gas suppliers, NNPC and, of course, TCN or NISO, I think the Minister of Power needs to take charge. There is a need for this leadership because, at the end of the day, they need to call them together,” he said.
Prolonged blackouts
The apology comes as Nigerians continue to express frustration over poor electricity supply, with homes and businesses facing extended periods without power in recent weeks.
The crisis has also raised concerns about the effectiveness of the Band A, B and C tariff system, under which consumers are charged according to the hours of electricity supply they are expected to receive.
Despite the classification, customers, particularly those on Band A, who are entitled to a minimum of 20 hours of electricity daily, have continued to complain about inadequate supply.
The situation has been worsened by intense dry-season heat and El Niño conditions, leaving residents struggling to cope with the absence of electricity for cooling appliances, including fans and air conditioners.
The persistent outages have triggered public criticism and protests, with several prominent Nigerians expressing dissatisfaction with the state of the power sector.
Veteran actress Kate Henshaw questioned the continued inability of the country to provide reliable electricity, lamenting that Nigerians had effectively turned their homes into “mini-factories” by generating their own power.
Content creator Cute Abiola also appealed to President Bola Tinubu in a video, highlighting the unbearable heat and the difficulties Nigerians face in securing alternative electricity sources.
The rising prices of petrol and diesel have further increased the cost of operating generators, while solar panels, batteries and inverters remain financially out of reach for many households and small businesses.
Tinubu’s electricity promise
The worsening electricity crisis has also brought renewed scrutiny to President Bola Tinubu’s campaign promises on power supply and the elimination of estimated billing.
During his 2023 presidential campaign, Tinubu assured members of the Organised Private Sector in Lagos that Nigerians would have access to electricity and would no longer be subjected to estimated bills.
He also challenged Nigerians to hold him accountable if he failed to fulfil the pledge.
“Whichever way, by all means necessary, you will have electricity, and you will not pay for estimated bills anymore. A promise made will be a promise kept.
“If I don’t keep the promise and I come for a second term, don’t vote for me, unless I give you adequate reasons why I couldn’t deliver,” he said.
Tegbe’s intervention
The power crisis has also intensified calls for the resignation of the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, with some Nigerians and civil society organisations accusing him of incompetence and failing to address the worsening electricity situation.
The demands followed the minister’s Saturday appeal for patience and assurance that electricity supply would improve within 72 hours.
However, Tegbe said on Monday that electricity had been restored to several locations in Lagos, Ogun, Oyo and Kwara states, as well as the Federal Capital Territory, following disruptions linked partly to the vandalism of a critical 330-kilovolt transmission line.
In an update shared on social media, the minister disclosed that the damaged Benin-Egbin transmission line had been repaired and returned to service.
He said the restoration had boosted electricity supply to the Lagos Complex to more than 1,000 megawatts, returning the system to the level recorded before the disruption.
