The Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, disclosed this at the recent HBSAN energy conference in Lagos, where he outlined plans to address longstanding weaknesses in the country’s electricity transmission infrastructure.

Tegbe said the government is preparing to begin the procurement process for the projects, adding that Nigerians would begin to see their benefits in two to three years.

He revealed that the government has started a technical audit across the entire country to understand the issues with the power sector and to know what should be prioritised“We have clustered Nigeria into three energy zones. The first one is the one that demands 50 per cent. If you fix Lagos and you fix the Abuja corridors, you’ve solved more than half of the problem of Nigeria. Because you can’t do that alone based on operational efficiency, you also have to build out your grid

The President has approved that we commence the process of building out the grid: East and Western grid. We’re going through the procurement process, but it’s something you’ll see the benefits in two to three years,” the Minister said.

The minister said the technical audit of electricity infrastructure is to identify faults and determine which facilities require urgent repairs or replacement.He said the exercise was intended to ensure that interventions addressed the actual causes of problems rather than directing funds towards the wrong equipment.

We have started a technical audit across the entire country to say where do we have issues, and what issues specifically do we have. I don’t want to fix transformer issues where I have conductor and relay problems. I don’t want to fix insulators where the challenges I actually have are towers. So, we will finish that technical audit in the next couple of weeks. When we finish it, we then target our prioritised areas,” he said.

Tegbe attributed some of the challenges facing the transmission network to the age of its infrastructure, saying certain facilities dated back several decades.

He maintained that some transmission towers and lines were inherited from an era when the Electricity Company of Nigeria operated before the National Electric Power Authority.

“This government has inherited a problem of 50 years. Before I became the Minister of Power, honestly, I used to think that everybody in the power sector just didn’t know their left from right. But the reality is, some of the towers have gone down with some of the transmission lines there.

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The Federal Government has ruled out an immediate increase in electricity tariffs, saying it has instead raised an estimated N1.23 trillion towards settling the backlog of debts in the power sector.
The Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, disclosed this on Monday in Abuja during a media parley to mark his first 100 days in office.
The minister also disclosed that electricity generation and transmission had remained above 5,000MW over the past couple of weeks, compared with the 3,700MW to 4,700MW range before June.

Tegbe said the government was focused on stabilising the electricity market, improving supply and addressing the financial challenges across the power value chain, rather than increasing tariffs.
“We have no plan to increase electricity tariffs. There is no immediate plan by this government to increase tariff. It is not on our table; it is not on our agenda”, the minister said.
According to him, the government had raised the N1.23 trillion as part of a wider programme aimed at addressing the estimated N3.3 trillion power-sector debt.

He said there was a significant financing milestone, adding that this forms part of the wider programme for addressing the N3.3 trillion in sector debt, adding that this is expected to improve sector liquidity.
Tegbe said the government’s approach was to address the structural and financial problems responsible for the persistent challenges in the electricity market instead of simply injecting funds without first establishing where the problems lie.
He disclosed that the ministry had conducted a diagnosis of the electricity value chain since he assumed office, revealing constraints in gas supply, generation, transmission and distribution.

According to the Minister of Power, gas supply to power stations had been constrained by damaged pipelines and commercial terms that discouraged investment, while the generation fleet remained heavily dependent on ageing thermal plants affected by deferred maintenance and stalled projects.
The minister said the diagnosis also revealed that only 27 per cent of generation companies’ bills were being paid, undermining their ability to maintain plants and pay gas suppliers.
He said the transmission network was affected by vandalised towers and lines, overstretched equipment and frequent tripping, while the distribution segment suffered aggregate technical, commercial and collection losses of between 30 and 40 per cent.

Tegbe said the challenges were interconnected, with unpaid bills weakening gas supply and maintenance, unreliable electricity depressing collections and poor collections deepening the sector’s debt.
He said a generation peak of 5,330MW was recorded between August and September.
Tegbe, however, acknowledged that the improvement had not translated into reliable electricity for all communities.Our next task is to sustain these gains and translate them into more dependable supply at customer level. We are aware that a national peak alone cannot describe the experience of every community,” he said.
He disclosed that the 375MW Alaoji open-cycle power plant had been restored to the national grid after three years offline.
He said new transformers commissioned at Apapa, Ijora, Alausa and Lekki in Lagos had unlocked 672MW of transmission capacity, while a new 300MVA transformer energised at Katampe, Abuja, had unlocked another 240MW.Tegbe said the government was also intensifying efforts to address estimated billing and improve revenue collection through metering.
He disclosed that approximately 350,000 meters were installed during the first 100 days of his tenure, while cumulative installations reached 1,004,260 as of August 2026.
He added that the resolution of the AMMON litigation had unlocked procurement of about 1.4 million smart meters across affected programmes.

According to him, 90,000 meters had also been installed in military formations, while 5,000 young Nigerians were undergoing training as smart-meter installers under the Power Force programme.
The minister said the government had also blocked revenue leakages associated with energy theft and revenue losses estimated at approximately N120 billion annually along the Ikorodu-Sagamu corridor.
He said improved billing, collection and remittance would help preserve resources needed to sustain electricity supply.

Tegbe said the ministry’s strategy rested on three pillars: stabilising the electricity value chain, restoring market discipline and strengthening governance.
On electricity access, the minister said the government had completed 62 solar and mini-grid installations across 30 states, representing about 43.6MW of installed solar capacity and 41,735 new connections.
He said the projects had an estimated beneficiary reach of more than 208,000 people.

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The plants, Alaoji_1, Ibom Power_1 and Rivers_1, recorded zero megawatts in average hourly generation and a load factor of zero per cent during the month. Their available capacities were also listed as zero, indicating that they contributed no electricity to the grid throughout the period.

The NERC factsheet on the operational performance of power plants showed that the national grid recorded an average available capacity of 5,038 megawatts in September, while average hourly generation stood at 4,089MW, resulting in a system-wide load factor of 81 per cent.

Compared with August 2026, available capacity increased by 5.89 per cent, but average hourly generation declined by 0.30 per cent, while the load factor fell by 5.04 per centThe data also showed that some other power plants operated at low levels during the period. Afam_1 generated an average of 0.72MW from an available capacity of 1.33MW, recording a load factor of 54 per cent, while Geregu_2 produced 1MW from 2MW available, with a load factor of 56 per cent.

However, Trans Amadi_1 and Dadin-Kowa_1 recorded load factors of 100 per cent or above after the system operator directed them to generate beyond their declared steady-state availability to support grid stability.

Performance among some of the larger power plants varied, with Kainji_1 recording a load factor of 98 per cent, generating 341MW from an available capacity of 347MW.Egbin_1 and Afam_2 each recorded a load factor of 94 per cent, while Ihovbor_2 achieved 91 per cent. Zungeru_1, however, utilised 61 per cent of its available capacity, generating 358MW out of 587MW.

Beyond the uneven performance of the generating plants, the regulator’s data showed that the national grid continued to operate outside prescribed frequency limits in September.

The average lower frequency fell to 49.43Hz, below the prescribed minimum of 49.75Hz, while the average upper frequency rose to 50.69Hz, exceeding the maximum operating limit of 50.25Hz.

Voltage performance also remained outside the prescribed limits, with the average lower voltage dropping to 304.90kV, below the minimum of 313.50kV, while the average upper voltage climbed to 350.28kV, above the maximum of 346.50kV.

The figures indicate that despite an increase in available generation capacity compared with August, average electricity generation declined, while frequency and voltage deviations persisted.

The performance of the plants also showed differences in capacity utilisation, with some units generating close to their available capacity while others recorded low output or no available capacity during the month.

It must be noted that the available capacities of most of these plants were far below their installed capacities. For example, Egbin Power Plant has an installed capacity of 1,320MW, but it declared 429MW in September and generated 402MW.

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The commission’s August 2026 factsheets showed that Eko Power Limited had 201 compliant and 46 non-compliant feeders out of 247 Band A feeders, while Ikeja Electric recorded 113 compliant and 52 non-compliant feeders out of 165 Band A feeders.

The data showed that two Band A feeders under Eko Power – Akangba Ts_Nrc_Print Serve and Akoka Ts_Akoka Local T3a_Akoka_Unilag 1 – recorded zero hours of electricity supply during the month.

Similarly, 11-OgbaINJ-T1-Isokoko and three other Band A feeders operated by IE Energy Lagos recorded zero hours of supply. Despite the failures, some feeders delivered close to the 24-hour Band A service requirement.Blue Rail Line was Eko Power’s best-performing feeder, recording an average of 23.9 hours of supply and full compliance across the 31 days of August. The top 10 Band A feeders under Eko Power averaged 23.9 hours, while the bottom 10 recorded an average of 13.1 hours. The overall Band A average stood at 21.9 hours.

For IE Energy, 132-EgbinTCN-MARYLAND-OMNIK was the best-performing feeder, recording an average of 24 hours of daily supply. The top 10 Band A feeders averaged 23.7 hours, while the bottom 10 averaged 12 hours. The overall Band A average was 21.3 hours.

The commission’s data showed that supply performance deteriorated further across the lower bands. Eko Power’s Band B feeders averaged 16.2 hours of supply, while Bands C, D and E averaged 12.6, 10.1 and 8.3 hours respectively.

For IE Energy, Band B averaged 15.3 hours, while Bands C, D and E averaged 12.3, 9.2 and 7.8 hours respectively.

Compliance was also lower across the bands. Eko Power recorded 36 compliant and 64 non-compliant feeders in Band B, 13 compliant and 29 non-compliant in Band C, six compliant and 10 non-compliant in Band D, and five compliant and 11 non-compliant in Band E.

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lectricity distribution companies collected N603.64bn from customers in the second quarter of 2026, despite a decline in the volume of electricity they received from the power market.

The figure was contained in the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission’s second-quarter 2026 report, which showed that the average energy offtake by the DisCos at their trading points fell to 3,197.03 megawatt-hours per hour in the quarter.

The Q2 figure represented a 112.45MWh/h, or 3.40 per cent, decline from the 3,309.48MWh/h average recorded in the first quarter. Despite the decline in offtake, the DisCos recorded an overall offtake performance of 94.07 per cent during the quarter, against available partially contracted capacity of 3,398.41MWh/h.

According to the report, the DisCos received a total of 6,982.32 gigawatt-hours of electricity during the quarter but billed customers for only 5,812.31GWh. It stated, “This translates to an overall energy accounting efficiency of 83.24 per cent and represents a 0.24pp decrease compared to 2026/Q1 (83.48 per cent)The report further revealed that the naira value of electricity off-taken by the DisCos stood at N946.57bn, while the total value of energy billed to customers was N744.67bn.

This translated to a billing efficiency of 78.67 per cent, representing a decline of 0.57 percentage points from the 79.24 per cent recorded in the first quarter. At the collection stage, the DisCos recovered N603.64bn from the N744.67bn billed to customers, translating to a collection efficiency of 81.06 per cent.

The report said this represented an improvement of 2.11 percentage points from the 78.95 per cent recorded in Q1. However, the difference between the amount billed and the amount collected stood at N141.03bn during the quar

The report also disclosed that the weighted average Aggregate Technical, Commercial and Collection losses across the 11 DisCos stood at 36.23 per cent in Q2.

It stated, “The ATC&C loss of 36.23 per cent is 19.31pp higher than the 2026 MYTO target (16.92 per cent) and translates to a cumulative revenue loss of N129.07 billion across all DisCos.”

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The Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, held a closed-door meeting with the leadership of selected distribution companies to discuss the proposed initiative, which targets the Lagos axis, Abuja-Kaduna-Kano and Enugu-Port Harcourt corridors.

In a statement after the meeting, the ministry said, the initiative is designed to address electricity distribution constraints and ensure that power generated and transmitted to the national grid reaches consumers more reliably, particularly in areas with high commercial and industrial demand.

Tegbe explained that the challenges facing the power sector extended beyond electricity generation and transmission to the capacity of distribution companies to receive and deliver available electricity to end users.

“The constraint on the sector is not limited to generation and transmission but includes how much power is taken up and delivered at the distribution end,” the statement quoted the minister as saying.

The proposed zones are expected to focus on locations where reliable electricity is critical to businesses, manufacturing and other productive activities. However, the statement did not provide a timeline for implementation, the proposed capacity of the zones or the specific infrastructure investments required to deliver round-the-clock supply.

The engagement, according to the statement, forms part of Tegbe’s commitment upon assuming office to adopt a disciplined and phased approach to addressing the sector’s longstanding challenges.

The distribution companies and energy firm represented at the meeting included Abuja Electricity Distribution Company, Ikeja Electric, Eko Power, Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company and Sahara Energy Group.

The proposed Energy Zones come amid persistent concerns over the reliability of electricity supply and the ability of distribution companies to deliver available power to consumers

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The groundbreaking ceremony was performed on Wednesday by Vice-President Kashim Shettima, who was represented by his Special Adviser on Legal and Compliance Matters, Alhaji Bashir Maidugu. The Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, was also in attendance.

According to a statement issued by the minister’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Adeola Labzy, the project is part of the government’s efforts to address weaknesses in electricity supply and improve the reliability of the national grid.

The statement read, “The Federal Government has begun construction of a new ultra-modern National Control Centre for the Nigerian Independent System Operator in Osogbo, Osun State, replacing a 64-year-old facility that no longer meets the demands of running Nigeria’s grid.”

Speaking through his representative, Shettima said reliable electricity was central to President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, stressing that power supply remained critical to economic growth, industrial productivity and social development.

He said electricity enabled manufacturers to plan production, small businesses to operate confidently, and hospitals and schools to function effectively, while creating jobs and expanding economic opportunities.

The Vice-President described the National Control Centre as a critical component of grid reliability, saying Nigeria needed modern infrastructure to manage its increasingly interconnected electricity system.

In his remarks, Tegbe said the new centre would give NISO improved visibility of activities across the national grid and enable operators to respond more quickly to faults and other disturbances.

He described the project as a practical demonstration of the President’s commitment to addressing the underlying challenges affecting electricity supply.

According to the minister, the facility will feature an integrated Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition system, large-format display screens and analytical tools to help operators identify emerging faults, plan preventive maintenance and optimise the use of existing generation and transmission capacity.

The centre is also expected to improve responses to grid disturbances, support the integration of renewable energy and strengthen Nigeria’s coordination with other countries participating in the West African Power Pool.

Tegbe said the project would be supported by stronger physical and cybersecurity measures to protect critical electricity infrastructure.

He said consumers and businesses stood to benefit from fewer avoidable outages and more dependable electricity supply, although the effectiveness of the control centre would also depend on improvements across the wider power value chain.

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NERC disclosed this in its July 2026 Factsheet on the financial health and efficiency of the Distribution Companies, released on September 24.

According to the commission, the industry recorded a 75.10 per cent billing efficiency during the month, with “total energy billed reaching ₦250.79bn out of ₦333.94bn energy received.”

The regulator also said the DisCos collected ₦205.53bn in revenue during the month, representing an 81.95 per cent collection efficiency.“Collection Efficiency: Recorded at 81.95%, resulting in a total revenue collection of ₦205.53bn for the month,” NERC statedThe commission said the industry’s overall revenue recovery performance stood at 74.91 per cent in July

“Revenue Recovery Performance: The industry reached an overall Recovery Efficiency of 74.91%,” it stated.

Eko Electricity Distribution Company recorded the highest recovery efficiency among the DisCos at 94.67 per cent, followed by Port Harcourt DisCo with 84.95 per cent and Benin DisCo with 79.15 per cent.

Highlighting the top performers, NERC said, “Eko (94.67%), Port Harcourt (84.95%), and Benin (79.15%) DisCos recorded the highest recovery efficiency levels for July.”

The commission said the factsheet provided details on the financial performance of the electricity distribution companies as part of efforts to keep stakeholders informed about developments in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry.

It urged members of the public and industry stakeholders to consult its website for further details.

“Visit the agency’s website for more details on the industry’s efforts and to stay informed on the numbers shaping the NESI,” the commission stated.

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The Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, disclosed the government’s position on electricity tariffs at a media parley in Abuja on Monday while marking his first 100 days in office.

“There are no immediate plans to increase electricity tariffs. Our goal is to build a commercially viable power sector while protecting vulnerable consumers,” Tegbe said.

The minister’s position comes against the backdrop of the N1.93tn electricity subsidy incurred by the Federal Government in 2025, according to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission’s 2025 Annual Report.

NERC said the subsidy obligation represented 57.44 per cent of the total Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading invoice during the year and averaged N160.69bn monthly.

The commission said the government incurred the subsidy because allowed electricity tariffs remained below cost-reflective levels, with the Federal Government covering the resulting gap.

“In the absence of cost-reflective tariffs, the government undertakes to cover the resultant gap (between the cost-reflective and allowed tariff) in the form of tariff subsidies.

It is important to note that due to the absence of cost-reflective tariffs across all DisCos, the government incurred a subsidy obligation of N1.93tn (57.44 per cent of total NBET invoice) during the year,” the commission said.

With the government maintaining that there are no immediate plans to increase tariffs, the subsidy burden could remain around the N2tn level this year. The subsidy burden neared N2tn in 2024 and 2025 despite the Band A to E tariff categorisation introduced in 2024.

Aside from Band A customers who pay the real cost of electricity, customers on other bands still enjoy government subsidies, which are now close to N2tn.

Earlier, electricity generation companies questioned the effectiveness of the Federal Government’s N4tn Presidential Power Sector Debt Reduction Programme, warning that fresh liabilities estimated at over N7tn could accumulate before the programme is fully implemented.

The power producers, under the aegis of the Association of Power Generation Companies, said that while they were not opposed to the Federal Government’s plan to raise bonds to settle outstanding obligations, the initiative would not provide a lasting solution to the liquidity crisis in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry because debts continue to accumulate monthly.

“Every month, the DisCos are not paying 100 per cent. NBET is not paying 100 per cent. The N4tn legacy debt is until December 2024. So, how about the accumulation for 2025? And what is already accumulated for 2026? So by the time you finish issuing this N4tn bond over seven years, by 2033, two times what you’re going to pay would have accumulated. So what is your plan?” the APGC Chief Executive, Joy Ogaji, asked the question.

Ogaji also called on the Federal Government to adopt a more sustainable approach to electricity subsidies, arguing that the current subsidy arrangement exists largely on paper because there is no corresponding budgetary provision.

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The company disclosed this during its September virtual stakeholder engagement, a monthly platform for educating customers, providing operational updates and addressing issues affecting service delivery.

In a statement, Ikeja Electric explained that eligible customers would receive refunds through credits applied to their vending transactions over the approved refund period.

“Customers can monitor their refund status online using their meter number or account number. The refund dashboard provides details including the meter cost, refund count, monthly refund amount, total refund received and last refund date, as well as the applicable refund token sent to the customer’s registered phone number or email address,” the statement read.It added that customers with concerns about their Meter Asset Provider refunds are advised to use Ikeja Electric’s official complaint channels or visit their nearest undertaking office for assistance.

The company also used the engagement to warn customers against engaging unauthorised electricians, following recent incidents involving fatalities linked to unauthorised electrical work.

Speaking during the session, Olaniyi Olayiwola, Head, Quality, Health, Safety & Environment, cautioned customers against allowing unqualified or unauthorised persons to climb Ikeja Electric poles, work on power lines, tamper with electrical installations or carry out illegal connections.He disclosed that recent incidents had resulted in the loss of life of individuals attempting to undertake unauthorised electrical activities on or around the company’s network.

“Please do not engage electricians to climb Ikeja Electric poles. If you see someone carrying out unsafe activities around our infrastructure, kindly report to us,” Olayiwola said.

He stressed that customers should not attempt to intervene directly when they observe unsafe electrical activities, but should instead contact Ikeja Electric through its designated safety emergency channels.

Olayiwola also urged customers and communities to maintain adequate clearance around high-voltage power lines, noting that encroachment on electricity infrastructure and inadequate right-of-way remain significant safety risks.

Speaking on the importance of customer engagement, Kingsley Okotie, Head of Corporate Communications, urged customers to rely on the company’s official communication and complaint channels for accurate information and timely resolution of concerns.

“Our engagement with customers goes beyond providing information. It is about ensuring that our customers have the knowledge and channels they need to stay safe, seek assistance and get their concerns properly addressed,” Okotie said.

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