By our reporter
The national electricity grid collapsed today, sparking widespread economic panic as blackout hit many businesses, homes and offices in what appears,like the raging insecurity, another unresolved problem by government.
Data from the Independent System Operator (ISO) indicated that power generation dropped sharply from 2,917.83 megawatts (mw) to a mere 1.5mw between 11:00 am and 12:00 pm.
Recall that last year alone, by December 11, the grid had collapsed 12 times.
Recall too that National Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) had stated that there was no grid collapse throughout the first quarter of this year (2025). Nigeria is presently in the third quarter of the year.
Shortly after today’s collapse, the Nigeria National Grid, an X handle that provides updates on electric power distribution, posted, however, that “System restoration is in progress.”
In another tweet, the X account stated that the DisCo loads of all power distribution companies (DisCos) across the country,apart from Ibadan DisCo, had plummeted to zero megawatt.
The term DisCo load refers to the amount of power (in mw) allocated from the national grid to each DisCo.
In the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and surrounding states, service provider Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC), in a statement posted on X, confirmed the collapse, citing a loss of supply from the grid at 11:23 am.
It stated: “The power outage currently being experienced is due to a loss of supply from the national grid, affecting electricity supply across our franchise areas.”
Efforts were ongoing with relevant stakeholders, AEDC assured, to restore power once the grid stabilizes.
Effects
In a feeble economy such as Nigeria’s, with poverty level very high, the effects of a grid collapse are far reaching.
Such collapse cripples the shaky economy by increasing businesses’ operational costs through forced resort to use of generators run on still-expensive petrol or diesel; stunts industrial growth and investment; slashes productivity, and causes tremendous financial losses even for the power companies themselves.
For a populace struggling with poverty, such outages, particularly if they last, jerk up already suffocating living costs; for instance, cost of sachet water may rise; foodstuffs too.
When these happen, they reduce disposable income in the pockets of individuals, even as the aging and underfunded power infrastructure leads to prolonged downtime, further worsening the national economic challenge.
