In a decisive move to overhaul Nigeria’s power sector, Adebayo Adelabu, the Minister for Power, declared on Monday that the focus must shift from merely generating electricity to ensuring its efficient delivery to end consumers. Speaking at a roundtable event organized by the Nigerian Electricity Management Services Agency (NEMSA), the minister emphasized the urgency of making the power sector work, stating that the government is fully committed to this transformation.
Adelabu acknowledged the existing power generation capacity in the country, with 23 connected plants having an installed capacity of over 10,000MW. However, he highlighted the disparity between the available capacity (approximately 6,000MW) and the actual supply to consumers (about 4,500MW). The minister stressed that the current approach of increasing power generation without effective delivery to customers is counterproductive.
The minister’s strategic roadmap for sector transformation adopts a bottom-up approach, prioritizing the end consumers. Adelabu emphasized the need for liquidity in the sector, highlighting the importance of revenue collection to finance activities across the power value chain.
While acknowledging the ongoing efforts to ramp up power generation and introduce new infrastructure, Adelabu asserted the critical role of NEMSA in ensuring that installations meet high-quality standards. He conveyed the government’s unwavering commitment to the power sector, emphasizing that the President, Bola Tinubu, is determined to provide the necessary support for delivering electricity to Nigerians.
Tukur Aliyu, the Managing Director of NEMSA, highlighted the agency’s crucial role in enforcing technical standards and regulations for the growth of the electricity industry. He emphasized the need for all electrical installations to meet required technical standards, ensuring safe, reliable, and sustainable electricity supply.
The roundtable event aimed at enlightening and engaging stakeholders, including legislators, judiciary representatives, and state government officials, to bridge the knowledge gap regarding NEMSA’s enforcement role. Aliyu noted that past resistance to NEMSA’s mandate stemmed from a lack of adequate knowledge among stakeholders, and the event served to sensitize participants on the legal framework for enforcing technical standards and regulations in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry and allied sectors.