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Blackouts throughout the country may worsen as the national grid experienced a partial collapse on Tuesday amid steadily declining electricity generation due to pipeline vandalism.
Data from the Nigeria Electricity System Operator has revealed that power generation dropped dramatically on Wednesday, resulting in a mere 1,580 megawatts being produced, Punch has reported.
According to officials, the decline led to a reduction in the electricity load allocated to the Discos, causing blackouts in various regions of the country throughout the past few days.
The partial system collapse is said to have occurred at the Shiroro Power Plant, dragging electricity generation to 1,233 MW from a peak of 3,207.
Collected data has revealed that prior to the partial collapse, the Abuja, Ikeja and Eko centres were receiving 350 MW each in order to meet the demand of most of their customers. This amount had dropped to 131 MW by midday on Wednesday.
Officials at the Power Arm of the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing have attributed the decline in power to pipeline vandalism, calling on Nigerians to safeguard their infrastructure and put a stop to pipeline explosions.
Management at Ikeja Electric has since apologised to its customers for interruptions in the power supply, saying that the poor service can partially be blamed on ongoing activities by labour unions picketing the facilities of the company.
Felix Ofulue, Head of Corporate Communications at Ikeja Electric, has confirmed that workers are not on strike but have been preventing protesters from entering the premises, thereby having to put their own responsibilities on hold.
The company has since assured its customers that it would do its best to remedy the situation as soon as possible.
