Energy, project and commercial legal advisory Ayodele Oni, has stated that Lagos State now has the legal authority and technical capacity to generate, distribute, and manage its own electricity supply independently, following reforms introduced by the Electricity Act of 2023.
Speaking on TVC Breakfast on Wednesday, he explained that the Act empowers states to establish independent electricity markets and operate outside the national grid if they meet the required standards.
He noted that previous policies forced states like Lagos to channel power through the national transmission network, only to receive less energy than they generated. However, the new framework allows states to retain full control of power generation and distribution within their borders.
“Under the old rule, you had to send what you generated to the Transmission Company of Nigeria, and then get back less than what you sent,” he said. “Now, Lagos can generate and distribute power within the state without sending it to the national grid.”
He also referenced the failed Enron deal initiated when President Bola Tinubu was governor of Lagos, explaining that at the time, there was no legal framework like the current Electricity Act or the now-repealed Electric Power Sector Reform Act (EPSRA) of 2005, which sought to open the sector to private participation.
He stressed that the Presidential Power Initiative (PPI), commonly referred to as the Siemens project, primarily focuses on addressing grid infrastructure, transmission, and distribution bottlenecks rather than power generation.
“Generation has never really been Nigeria’s biggest challenge,” he explained. “The problem lies in transmission and distribution. You can build a 2,000-megawatt power plant today, but if the infrastructure isn’t there, you can’t dispatch the power to end users.”
Ayodele, further said that improving grid reliability would encourage private investments in renewable and off-grid power solutions. “There’s already a lot of activity around solar and mini-grids through the Rural Electrification Agency,” he noted. “But investors need confidence that generated power can actually reach consumers.”
He concluded that with Lagos’ new autonomy under the Electricity Act, the state could become a model for energy federalism, where subnational governments generate and manage power independently.
“States like Lagos can now attract investors and build self-sufficient energy markets,” he said. “The future of Nigeria’s power sector depends on allowing states to take charge of their own electricity systems.”