The national power grid experienced another partial collapse on Tuesday, marking the ninth time that the country has been plunged into darkness.
According to data from the Nigerian System Operator’s portal (niggrid.org), power generation dropped to an unprecedented zero megawatts from 2:00 pm, affecting all 22 operational generation companies (GenCos) nationwide.
This latest blackout is another blow to Nigeria’s struggling power sector, which has been plagued by instability, insufficient capacity, and frequent grid disturbances.
Meanwhile, the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has clarified that the national grid collapse, which occurred on Tuesday, November 5, 2024, was a partial disruption rather than a total outage.
Data from the Nigerian System Operator’s portal (niggrid.org) indicated that power generation dropped to zero megawatts around 2:00 pm, impacting all 22 operational generation companies (GenCos) across the country.
In a statement on Tuesday, Ndidi Mbah, TCN’s general manager of public affairs, attributed the incident to multiple line and generator trips, which caused instability across the grid, interrupting power supply in several regions.
“The disruption did not impact the entire grid, sparing certain areas from power loss,” Mbah said. “TCN engineers are actively working to restore bulk power to affected regions, with supply already restored to Abuja by 2:49 pm.”
Efforts to restore power to other areas are ongoing, Mbah added, expressing regret for the inconvenience caused to electricity consumers.
This most recent collapse adds to an increasingly alarming trend.
The first major blackout of the year occurred on February 4, 2024, when the grid’s capacity plummeted from 2,407 megawatts to a mere 31 MW by midday, hitting zero shortly after.
Since then, the grid has continued to falter, with subsequent breakdowns on August 5 and three times in October.
Notably, the October 14 collapse was followed by a partial failure the next day, and another disturbance occurred on October 19, narrowly avoiding a complete collapse.
Recall that the federal government unveiled an advanced supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) technology to monitor the national power grid performance.
The technology is said to be valued at $56 million.
The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) said the project was funded by the World Bank to reduce frequent power grid collapses and enhance supply reliability.
Checks confirmed that all distribution companies are currently receiving no power from the grid, leaving their feeders without electricity.
Earlier in September, the Minister Of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, during a demonstration event at the national control centre (NCC) in Gwagwalada, Abuja, said the SCADA system plays a significant role in revolutionising the management of the grid.
Adelabu said the system allows for real-time monitoring of grid performance.
“The SCADA system will enable us to monitor the entire electricity network from a centralised location, ensuring prompt responses to outages, efficient load management, and optimised system performance,” Adelabu said.
“With features like automated data collection, fault detection, and remote-controlled operations, we are laying the foundation for a more resilient and responsive power sector.”