The Nigerian government has claimed it cannot continue to subsidise electricity because of huge debts already incurred.
This was made known by the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, during a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday.
Adelabu said the country must begin to move towards a cost-effective tariff model, as the country is currently owing the tune of N1.3trillion to generating businesses (GenCos) and $1.3billion due by gas firms.
He further stated that just N450billion was funded for subsidies this year, despite the fact that the ministry requires more than N2trillion in subsidies, adding that state governments would now be able to generate power independently to supply power to their respective states.
He stated that the grid had collapsed six times between December 2023 and now due to a lack of gas, ageing machines in the grid value chain, insufficient capacity to evacuate generated power, and the destruction of power stations in some parts of the country’s North-East geopolitical zone.
It was learnt that the Transmission Commission of Nigeria has over 100 abandoned projects due to discrepancies in contract figures caused by FX volatility, and that the business will not grant new contracts until all such projects are completed, according to the power minister.
The minister equally mentioned that over 50 billion Naira has been set aside in the 2024 budget to establish small grids to provide power to remote locations.
He warned power distribution businesses (DisCos) should sit up, or those found wanting will have their licence revoked.
The minister also stated that he had contacted Nuhu Ribadu, the National Security Adviser (NSA) to assist with the protection of power infrastructure.
The power minister’s remark came amid speculation that the President Bola Tinubu-led government had returned the fuel subsidy he removed during his inauguration on the 29th of May, 2023.
