Power Minister Offers Explanation for Nationwide Outages

Nigeria’s Minister of Power,  Premium Times reports, has offered an explanation for the recent wave of nationwide power outages that have left many Nigerians in the dark. The outages, which started in October, have been causing disruption to businesses and daily life across the country. However, the reasons behind the outages have been a subject of controversy, with conflicting reports from the various distribution companies. According to the Minister of Power, Engr. Saleh Mamman, the outages are a result of system collapse and maintenance works, which are aimed at improving the power grid’s capacity and reliability. This explanation, however, has been disputed by  Nigeria Info FM who accuses the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) of misleading customers over the outages on Band A feeders. Meanwhile, Ikeja Electric, one of the distribution companies, has also given a different reason for the outages in their area. The TCN, in response, has disputed Ikeja Electric’s reason for the outages. The Minister’s explanation comes as the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has ordered an investigation into the outages, with a view to identifying the causes and finding solutions to prevent future occurrences.