Energy theft, vandalism responsible for power outages – IBEDC

The Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) says vandalism and theft of electricity infrastructure are major factors contributing to the prevailing power outage in its franchise areas.

Mrs Busolami Tunwase, Lead, Media Relations, IBEDC, said this in a statement on Sunday in Ota, Ogun.

Tunwase said that the unfortunate vandalism of Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) towers in Ogun State in May 2023 led to over seven months of darkness for many of its valued customers.

“At IBEDC, we are particularly confronted with the escalating cases of vandalism, with over 40 incidents recorded in 2024 alone.

“In addition, we have noticed an alarming upsurge, with over 1,450 identified cases of energy theft between January and February this year,” she said.

She noted that the theft of valuable assets, such as transformer oil, cables and aluminium conductors, posed a significant challenge to its operations.

She added that the development had made affected communities to be thrown into extended periods of outage, depending on the severity of the act.

Tunwase said that in addition to vandalism, energy theft through illegal connections, meter bypass, and illicit meters pose major challenges to the adequate supply of power.

She explained further that these activities not only disrupted the supply but also resulted in revenue losses and liquidity issues for the electricity value chain.

“The management of IBEDC will like to communicate these issues to foster understanding and reassure our esteemed customers of our commitment to finding lasting solutions.” she said.

Tunwase listed other factors that  militate against adequate supply of power to include low supply of gas to Generating Companies (Gencos) as well as payment apathy by customers.

She said all of these had significantly reduced the power available on the transmission grid for onward supply to IBEDC.

According to her, this in turn greatly hindered the ability to provide power to customers within its franchise, which are  Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Kwara, and partly, Kogi, NigerEkiti states.

“We, therefore, recognise all the inconvenience and sincerely apologise for any disruptions experienced by our customers.