Nigeria’s minister of power Joseph Tegbe has reaffirmed the commitment of the federal government to making electricity more available, grid
reliability, including a promise to ensuring a financially sustainable electricity market to restore investor confidence.
The minister stated this in Nigeria’s federal capital on friday during a media engagement where he disclosed that the ultimate goal of government is to ensure that electricity becomes a catalyst for national productivity
rather than a constraint to economic growth.
While reeling out some of the key areas of reforms under the current administration of president bola tinubu, Tegbe noted that Since assuming office, President Bola
Tinubu, has demonstrated the strongest political commitment to electricity
sector reforms given the administration’s conviction that no nation ever industrialised without reliable electricity.
The minister also noted that Nigeria’s power sector has moved from policy conversations to
practical implementation, declaring that the administration’s continued
implementation of the Electricity Act, has created an entirely new constitutional and
regulatory landscape where states now have the opportunity to develop electricity
markets that reflect their peculiar economic realities.
“Rather than viewing decentralisation as a threat, this administration has embraced
it as an opportunity to unleash innovation, competition and investment across the
federation” he said
Specifically according to the minister, government is already tackling one of the troubling challenges to market sustainability regarding the crippling liquidity crisis that has accumulated over many
years in the nation’s power sector.
The minister said that the Federal Government is now advancing the Power Sector Bond
initiative to resolve the enormous legacy obligations owed to generation companies, gas
suppliers and other market participants, this according to him is a strategic intervention designed to
restore confidence, unlock fresh investment and return commercial discipline to the
Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry.
While speaking on metering, the minister of power noted that the administration of president bola tinubu has placed metering at the centre of
electricity reform.
“For decades, estimated billing became one of the greatest sources of
distrust between electricity providers and consumers. Today, through the Presidential
Metering Initiative, Nigeria is moving decisively towards universal metering because
consumers deserve transparency, fairness and confidence that they only pay for the
electricity they actually consume”
The current administration the minister further noted has also prioritised investment in transmission infrastructure,
expanded rural electrification, strengthened institutional coordination across the
electricity value chain, with a commitment to continue to pursue reforms that encourage private capital
while also preserving the public interest.
On specific areas of interventions to tackle years of unresolved challenges in the sector, Tegbe noted that the ministry under his watch has commenced a number of reforms amongsts which are
Inauguration of the Power Force. This initiative according to him will bring together 5000 Nigerian
Youths for meter installation across the country, the objective he said is to close the
metering gap and also develop a strong skilled pool of young Nigerians in electricity
field (NAPTIN).
The minister also disclosed that significant progress in resolving the age-long challenges
surrounding meter procurement is underway.
“Although much work remains, enhanced operational coordination, improved plant
availability and better engagement across the value chain are beginning to produce
measurable improvements”
“Our diagnosis of the Nigerian Electricity Supply
Industry is honest. The challenges are not confined to one institution. They exist across
generation, transmission, distribution, regulation, governance and market liquidity.
Accordingly, our response must be equally comprehensive”
On the way forward for the sector, Tegbe noted that Technical Audit of the National Transmission Network will be carried out, the whole idea according to him is to identify ageing assets, overloaded substations, weak transmission
corridors, protection failures, system bottlenecks and operational vulnerabilities.
“This exercise will provide the factual basis for prioritising investments, reducing
system failures, improving planning and ensuring that every naira invested delivers
measurable value” the minister said.
Tegbe noted that as part of steps to fast track growth in the sector, government will work to harmonise both federal and State Electricity Regulations, declaring that his ministry will closely work with NERC and
State Electricity Regulatory Commissions to resolve jurisdictional disputes,
establish regulatory harmony and ensure that decentralisation produces certainty
rather than confusion.
On Grid Stabilisation Programme, Tegbe also noted that a stable grid is the foundation of reliable electricity with a promise to immediately commence strategic investments in three
critical transmission corridors: Lagos Corridor; Enugu–Port Harcourt; and Abuja–
Kaduna–Kano as parts of ongoing efforts to ensure that some of the challenges that have impeded growth in the power sector are significantly reduced to enable citizens get value for their paid services.
