The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, disclosed on Sunday that more than 40% of Nigerians are now receiving up to 20 hours of electricity daily, a significant improvement in the country’s power supply.
Adelabu attributed this progress to a series of reforms introduced by the ministry over the past year, supported by President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
“The major achievement is the fact that today we generate over 5,500 megawatts of power, we transmit and distribute it, and over 40 per cent of customers today enjoy over 20 hours of regular power supply across the nation. You can see that there is a significant improvement between when we came in and now, which we intend to improve further,” he stated.
The minister emphasized that these efforts are in line with President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which focuses on fostering industrial growth through a reliable power supply.
Adelabu noted that stable electricity is crucial to the economic advancement of developed countries and stressed the need for Nigeria to achieve similar goals.
“This is why we say that we must achieve this for Nigeria as a country,” he said.
He outlined the ministry’s vision of ensuring consistent electricity for homes, businesses, and institutions, which would boost employment opportunities and operational efficiency.
Reflecting on the administration’s progress, Adelabu highlighted that the nation’s installed generation capacity has risen from 13,000 megawatts to over 14,000 megawatts. This increase is due to the commissioning of new hydroelectric power plants and upgrades to existing facilities.
“Our installed capacity is over 14,000 megawatts of power due to the addition of the newly commissioned Zungeru hydroelectric power plant and improved capacity of some of the existing power plants,” he remarked.
The minister further discussed key steps taken to reform the sector, including the signing of the 2023 Electricity Act, which decentralizes and liberalizes the power industry. He also mentioned the implementation of a strategic policy framework aimed at enhancing market performance and liquidity.
Adelabu credited infrastructure improvements, such as new transformers and mobile substations, for the enhanced power distribution across the country.
“The electricity that we enjoy today is not by accident. It’s because of all these transformers and mobile substations that we commissioned and installed,” he said.
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