The federal government will pay a cumulative total of ₦24 trillion as electricity subsidy to maintain stability across the country.
This is as the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, regretted constant attacks on transmission lines costing the government ₦10 billion to fix vandalized assets.
He decried the aged state of most electricity assets across the country and the unwillingness of most of the sector’s players to conduct their businesses in line with rules and regulations.
Adelabu stated this while speaking at PWC’s Annual Power and Utilities Roundtable themed ‘Reigniting Hope in Nigeria’s Electric Power Sector
The Minister of Power represented by his Chief Technical Adviser, Adedayo Olowoniyi, noted that the theme resonates deeply with the present administration’s collective mission to restore trust, drive innovation, inclusive growth and deliver tangible results in the sector.
“Part of the challenge we’ve seen in Nigeria is that getting stakeholder buy-in often is a challenge. And that is why managing the value chain, especially electricity value chain in Nigeria is a big challenge. We have so many participants that may not want to follow market rules.
“And it is absolutely critical that we are all following the rules and regulations that are created by the regulator, and actually focusing on making sure that we create an environment where we have the right level of market discipline,” Adelabu said.
He highlighted that the federal government has made progress in its effort to ensure stable electricity across the country.
“We have made some progress in the past year in addressing some of the issues across the Nigeria power sector and setting the sector on the path for growth. To ensure the sustainability of the energy sector, the Federal Government of Nigeria has implemented a multi-pronged approach, spanning across legislation with the enactment of the Electricity Act of 2023,” Adelabu stated.
Emphasizing the challenges affecting the sector, Adelabu, pointed out costs incurred in repairing vandalized assets. He also accused some industry players of thwarting the efforts of the government with foul practices.
“Our successes have not been without its challenges. We have recorded frequent grid disturbances recently due to various factors, which include aging infrastructure, resource limitations, capacity inadequacy across the value chain, and predominantly a consistent vandalism experience on the transmission network across the country.
