States can end incessant national grid collapse 

It is sad to note that the issue of persistent collapse of the National Grid is now being interpreted with different conspiracy theories among Nigerians. The government of regionalism practiced in the first republic and our 28 years of military unitarism made our socio-political thought to be awkwardly guided as well as pre-dominated by regionalism and unitarism despite the 58 years of abolishment of regionalism with states creation and the 26 years of democracy.

It baffles me to note that many Nigerians are not aware of the recent changes in the power sector. Under the changes in the power sector the right question to ask is, what is my state governor doing about power supply? Our quest for permanent solution on electricity for both domestic and industrial uses now rest on the effort and commitment of our respective state government.

The electricity matters in Nigeria used to be in the Exclusive Legislative List (federal powers) as provided by the 1999 Constitution as amended, but thanks to the 9th National Assembly (the Senate and the House Representatives) and the 36 state Houses of Assembly and President Muhammadu Buhari who passed and assented a Bill into law which removed it from the Exclusive Legislative List (federal powers) and transferred it to the Concurrent Legislative List (shared powers among the tiers of government).

In March 2023 President Buhari signed the Fifth Alteration Bill (Bill No.17), the Bill altered the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended to allow states generate, transmit and distribute electricity in areas covered by the national grid; and for related matters. On the other hand, In February 2024 President Bola Ahmed Tinubu assented into law the Electricity Amendment Bill 2024 which was passed by the 10th National Assemby.

The constitutional amendment by President Buhari meant that states can now participate in the electricity supply business, which was previously the exclusive preserve of the federal government as administered by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC). In other words, states are allowed to license the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity.

However, the Act signed by President Tinubu, on the other hand, grants the power to generate, transmit, and distribute electricity to states, companies, and individuals which marks an important development in Nigeria’s electricity sector. The Act aims to break the monopoly in electricity generation, transmission, and distribution at the national level.

This significant development involved three stages; one, the amendment of the 1999 Constitution which was done by President Buhari in 2023; two, the amendment of the Electricity Act which was done by President Tinubu in 2024 and the third and final stage requires individual states to create their laws for the state governors to sign those laws. The moment state passes its electricity market regulation, the state as well as companies, and individuals within that state can generate, transmit and distribute electricity.

The 2024 Electricity Act allows anyone to construct, own or operate an undertaking for generating electricity not exceeding one megawatt (MW) in aggregate at a site or an undertaking for distribution of electricity with a capacity not exceeding 100 kilowatts (KW) in aggregate at a site, or such other capacity as the NERC may determine from time to time, without a license.

It worries me to note that, as a country we do not have sufficient electricity generation, transmission, and distribution capacity even for domestic uses let alone for industrialisation. Stable power supply is a necessary precondition for Industrialisation. Industrialisation is a means for unemployment and poverty reduction in the society. 

The United States of America with a population of about 390 million generates 1,143,757 megawatts; South Africa with a population of about 59 million people generates 58,095 megawatts; Saudi Arabia with a population of about 35 million people generates 83,036 megawatts; and Nigeria with a population of over 200 million people only at peak generates about 7,421 megawatts without a corresponding capacity for transmission and distribution.

The power sector in Nigeria has three cycles:(1) Generating Companies (GENCOS), (2) Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and (3) Distribution Companies (DISCOS). Each of the cycles largely depends on one another for the proper functioning of the system. If the generating companies generate the power, the power must be transmitted before the distribution companies could supply to the final or end users. The DISCOS will only supply to the final users what they receive from the transmission company and the transmission company will only transmit what they get from the GENCOS. 

The new law presents an opportunity for  serious and determined individual state governments to be self-sufficient in the electricity sector for their development. Let individual states take advantage of this new law for their development. There is a need for attracting both public and private sectors investments in the electricity sector of their respective states in order to transform their economies. 

May God bless Nigeria!

Nurudeen Dauda,

Kaduna, Kaduna state