Erratic Power: Government steps In to tackle gas crisis

Nigeria’s federal government says it is working to fix ongoing gas shortages that are affecting electricity supply across the country.

The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, said in Abuja that the government has started taking specific steps to improve gas supply to power plants. These plants rely heavily on gas to generate electricity.

For many years, Nigerians have experienced unstable power supply. A major reason is that power plants do not get enough gas to operate fully.

According to industry data, about 68% of power plants are not working at full capacity because of gas shortages and payment issues. This has led to frequent drops in electricity generation.

Adelabu explained that the government is trying to improve coordination between the gas and power sectors. He said this is important to increase electricity production and reduce problems with the national grid. He also connected these efforts to wider economic reforms by President Bola Tinubu.

He asked Nigerians to be patient, saying the changes will gradually improve electricity for homes and businesses.

The power sector is also facing serious financial problems. Power generation companies (GenCos) are currently dealing with about ₦6.8 trillion in debt. This has forced some of them to shut down operations.

The debt has been building up since 2015 and is increasing by around ₦200 billion every month. Because of this, many companies struggle to maintain equipment, buy gas, and cover running costs.

Reports also show that about 60% of payments owed in the sector have not been paid. This has caused a shortage of cash across the entire energy supply chain.

Since gas-powered plants produce nearly 70% of Nigeria’s electricity, gas suppliers are becoming unwilling to continue supplying gas without guaranteed payment. This is making the situation worse.

To solve this, the government is considering financial solutions, including a bond programme that could be worth up to ₦4 trillion. The aim is to pay off debts owed to power companies and gas suppliers and improve cash flow in the sector.

However, some people are worried this could increase Nigeria’s public debt. Also, some power companies disagree with the reported debt figures, saying they may not be accurate.

Although Nigeria has the capacity to generate over 13,000 megawatts of electricity, actual power generation is still far below what the country needs.

This shows how urgent it is to fix both gas supply issues and financial problems in the power sector.