Nigeria’s electricity woes worsened on Tuesday, April 5, as two additional power generating plants collapsed, bringing the total number of plants not generating Megawatts, MW, of electricity to 10.
According to reports, Shiroro power plant in Niger state which has the capacity to produce 600 MW, yesterday tripped off as its four units 411G1, 411G2, 3 and 4 were reported to have shut down.
Sapele II power plant in Delta state, built under the National Integrated Power Project, NIPP, with its capacity put at 225 MW, four units GT1, GT2, 3 and 4 also shut down.
Total national power generation as at Tuesday evening stood at 2,774.2 MW down from 3,657.5 MW on March 31.
Post-Nigeria gathered that the shutdown is coming barely few days the nation’s generating capacity hit a record low of zero Megawatt at exactly 12.58pm on March 31.
Related: Nigeria in total blackout as Power generation drops to Zero megawatt
Generation from Egbin, the nation’s biggest power station, was limited yesterday to 415 MW due to gas constraints, down from 1,085 MW on March 15. While Shell’s Afam VI power plant generated the highest Megawatts of electricity at 418 MW, data showed.
Post-Nigeria on Wednesday, April 6, learnt that protesters had gathered at the Suleja Local Government Area of Niger state to protest and register their complaint over the protracted power outage and recent hike in electricity tariffs.
It could be recalled, that the former Lagos state Governor, Raji Fashola now Minister of Power, Works and Housing, had during the 2015 campaign said, “The only way the country can have stable electricity is to vote out the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, from power in next year’s general election.”
Fashola speaking further, reiterated that it was possible for every home in Nigeria to have un-interrupted power supply only if the All Progressives Congress, APC, is given the opportunity to steer the ship of the country.
He said, ”Yes I agree with you that it is possible to generate electricity and to make sure that everybody in this country has electricity; we have to do the right thing.
“But you know what, the only way that you and I will have electricity in this country will be to vote out the PDP.
”In 16 years hundreds of billions of naira have been spent and we cannot switch on electricity and in seven years we have created four plants. It shows that something is missing.
“So unless you vote for All Progressive Congress, it is going to be difficult to have electricity.
“They started from vision 2020-20 and I told you then that they were having a nightmare, that there was no vision,” Fashola said then.
Political watchdogs have begun to wonder why Fashola who had boasted that his party would provide stable electricity supply has now been overwhelmed with the situation.
A source in the Ministry of Power, has disclosed that Fashola is presently under pressure to quit his job as power supply under his control has been from one negative saga to the other with no clear guideline to address the crisis.
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