The national electricity grid in Nigeria collapsed for the third time in one week on October 19, 2024, causing widespread blackouts across the country. This marks the eighth collapse in 2024, highlighting ongoing challenges with the nation’s power infrastructure.
Several factors contributed to the repeated grid failures. One of the major issues is the outdated infrastructure of the grid, which struggles to handle the growing electricity demands. Despite assurances from the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) that system collapses had decreased by over 70% in recent years, the current situation suggests that deeper issues remain unaddressed.
A specific cause of the most recent collapse was a fire at the Afam Power Generating Station, which disrupted the grid and caused a massive drop in power generation. Units at Afam III and Afam VI tripped, leading to significant generation losses and destabilizing the entire grid. The country’s reliance on a single national grid means any disturbance at a major power station can result in a nationwide blackout, as seen in this incident.
Authorities, including the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, have called for increased investments in upgrading the grid and decentralizing the power system. Decentralization, which would allow for regional grids, is seen as a way to reduce the nationwide impact of future failures.
Efforts are being made to restore power, but the repeated collapses signal the need for urgent reforms in Nigeria’s electricity sector.
