Joseph Tegbe, the Minister of Power, apologised to Nigerians on Thursday over recent electricity disruptions. He assured the public of swift restoration of normal supply.
The outages affected Lagos, Abuja, Ogun, Kwara and Oyo. Residents and businesses in these areas faced reduced power in recent days. Many of the locations had earlier recorded noticeable improvements in supply.
Tegbe issued the statement through Adeola Adelabu, his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity. He acknowledged the hardship the outages caused to households, businesses and public institutions.
Preliminary investigations showed the disruptions did not result from a major breakdown of the national grid. Instead, they stemmed from operational and maintenance challenges within the electricity sector.
Inadequate gas supply affected thermal power plants. Meanwhile, hydroelectric stations produced less power because of declining water inflows into reservoirs.
Tegbe said he was working closely with the Transmission Company of Nigeria, the Nigerian Independent System Operator and the electricity distribution companies. He directed them to resolve the operational difficulties quickly.
He also instructed the agencies to speed up ongoing maintenance activities. In addition, he asked them to keep Nigerians informed of progress.
Tegbe reiterated the Federal Government’s commitment to improving electricity reliability. He noted that the government remained conscious of the economic and social impact of prolonged outages.
He appealed to Nigerians to remain patient while restoration efforts continued. Further updates would follow as the situation improved.
