A Nation in Darkness

[Richard Akindele]

ONE year down the road, management of power generation under the administration of President Umaru Yar'Adua has dropped to an all-time low, registering an average 1,630 Megawatts (Mw) output from Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), the state run power utility.

By May 29, 2007, when the President was sworn in, average power generation was in the region of 2,800 Mw.

In the last one year, average residential expenditure (an estimated 60 million residents use generators of varying sizes) on fuelling power generators has climbed to an all time high of N1.56 trillion (about $13.35 billion) per annum and similar level of expenditure on private power generation has characterised the affairs of industrial and commercial power consumers. Early last year, independent checks recorded about half the figures outlined above.

Recently, Mr. Steven Dimitriyer, the Senior Private Sector Specialist at the World Bank said Nigeria experienced the worst electricity crisis among its contemporaries -a description which underscores the nightmarish circumstances surrounding power generation, supply and distribution in the country.

"Electricity crisis is the most important infrastructure bottleneck in Nigeria today... All types of firms experience power outages and 85 of them own generators," he said.

Owing to government's inability to provide power supply, major roads and streets in capital cities across the country remain pitch dark at night, heightening the spectre of crime and vehicular accidents; some hospitals are forced to carry out medical operations on patients with the aid of kerosene lanterns and candles; medical laboratories cannot conduct certain culture tests and this portends dire consequences for health care delivery; more homes now store petrol indoors for use on generators, heightening the risk of fire accidents; pupils and students have been given added incentive not to read at night since they have to resort to use of lanterns and candles; industrial output has dropped abysmally low and artisans whose businesses depend on power supply availability have been forced to embark on a long and unwelcome holiday.

In the last one year also, government has failed to meet its contractual obligations to contractors handling power projects across the country under the guise it is carrying out stock-taking or conducting one probe or the other. While this serves as a major disincentive to investment, ranking government personnel ironically still embarks on foreign trips, purportedly in search of foreign investors.

Meanwhile, one year after President Yar'Adua's assumption of office, Nigerians are still awaiting fulfillment of election promises regarding the declaration of a state of emergency in the sector.

In the last one year, gas lines supplying feed-stock to thermal power stations of the PHCN have been repeatedly vandalised by militants and aggrieved community youths in the Niger Delta, limiting the power generation capacity of the PHCN.

Indeed, the largest power plant in the country, Egbin Thermal Power Station, with a rated power generation capacity of 1,320Mw has been producing an average 300Mw in the last one year, recording an abysmal 60Mw in the last week of April, 2008.

Similarly, gas supply to the 414Mw Geregu Thermal Power Station in Kogi State, the 335Mw Papalanto Thermal Power Station in Ogun State, the 335Mw Omotosho Thermal Power Station in Ondo State has been largely cut off owing to acts of vandalism - an indication, government's attempts (if any), at addressing the Niger Delta crisis has failed to yield the desired results.

Residential Consumers

It is becoming increasingly difficult to analyse this category of power consumers owing to paucity of data from the Customs and Excise Department, the Federal Office of Statistics, PHCN, the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and other government agencies contacted. Indeed, while the number of power consumers continues to rise, there hasn't been a corresponding increase in the capacity of the PHCN to meet the demand.

Essentially, while demand for electricity among this group of consumers is rising, available power supply is shrinking - resulting in load-shedding and all manner of power supply management to ensure what is available gets around.

Early this year, we had to depend on...

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