National Grid Experiences Partial Collapse, Fourth Incident In October

The National grid suffered a partial collapse on Tuesday night, causing blackouts in some parts of the country.

This latest incident marks the ninth grid collapse—partial or full—recorded in 2024 and the fourth just this month.

According to data from the Nigerian System Operator’s portal (niggrid.org), the grid’s capacity plummeted to 2,037.2 megawatts (MW) by 10:08 pm on Tuesday.

Power generation from key plants, including Sapele, Rivers IPP, Omotosho, Omoku, Okpai, Kainji, and Ibom Power, dropped to zero megawatts, while Dadinkowa G.S reported no power output throughout Tuesday.

The recurring collapses have sparked concerns over Nigeria’s energy stability, with both residential and industrial consumers grappling with erratic power supply.

In a related development, the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has announced that electricity will be restored to northern Nigeria within 72 hours.

Speaking to senators on Tuesday, Adelabu addressed the widespread outages affecting the region and recent national grid failures.

The Transmission Company of Nigeria previously reported that, on October 22, the 330-kilovolt (kV) Ugwaji-Apir transmission lines tripped, causing outages across the North-East, North-West, and parts of North-Central Nigeria.

Independent System Operator Executive Director Nafisatu Ali confirmed that insurgents vandalized the Shiroro-Kaduna line, which is a critical power source for northern regions.

In response, President Bola Tinubu has directed military support to safeguard repairs.