THE national grid has collapsed for the fifth time in the year, plunging many places into darkness.
Although the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) is yet to comment on the matter, the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) said the grid collapsed around 2:55 pm on Monday.
“We understand that some of our customers are still without power due to a system failure from the national grid at 2.55 pm today, 5th August 2024,” AEDC wrote on X.
However, it assured customers that the distribution company is working with others to restore the system.
“Please be assured that the system is gradually stabilising, and we are working diligently with all relevant stakeholders to restore power to the affected areas as quickly as possible,” it said.
The grid has collapsed five times in 2024, the first happening on February 4. It also collapsed on March 28, April 15, and July 6.
This newspaper reports that this is the fifth time in 2024 that consumers will experience power outages occasioned by incidents from the grid.
While speaking in a recent interview with our correspondent, the Executive Director, Electricity Consumer Protection Advocacy Centre, Princewill Okorie, regretted that the grid keeps having issues despite the hike in electricity tariff.
Okorie lamented that unmetered customers would still be made to pay for the period of the collapse, wondering what the government has been doing to stop the incidents.
“What are the causes of these grid failures or collapses? Are the materials used in building the grip of good quality and standard? Who is managing the grid? The players in the sector are more interested in collecting money from the consumers rather than making the system stable.
“What you hear more about the power sector is payment. The money that the international communities are bringing to the industry and the money that is unlawfully collected from the consumers, where are they being utilised? The operational expenditures of the Discos, and how do they spend them?
“In the past few months, they keep increasing tariffs yet the power sector is inefficient. They are interested in collecting money but whether the money is judiciously utilised or not, nobody cares. They keep overbilling customers. The desperation to collect revenue from customers for services not delivered is a challenge.
“Now that the grid collapsed, the unmetered customers will still be made to pay for darkness. That is injustice. The government should address this issue of grid collapse once and for all,” Okorie stated.