We Can’t Put End To National Grid Collapses; Says Tinubu Govt
The Nigerian government, led by President Bola Tinubu, has said insecurity in the northern region is making it difficult to stop the collapse of the national electricity grid.
This was stated by the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, who spoke during the 2025 budget defence session with the Senate Joint Committee on Power.
Adelabu emphasised the importance of repairing the damaged Shiroro-Kaduna-Mando line, which has been out of service since a vandalism incident in October 2024.
The failure has put enormous strain on the grid, resulting in repeated failures.
“The Kaduna-Shiroro-Mando line was one of the two major lines transmitting power to the north. The second, the Ugwuaji-Makurdi line, was also vandalized but has been repaired. The Shiroro-Mando-Kaduna line, however, remains down due to insecurity,” he said on Monday.
“This is why our grid is so fragile, as it relies on a single line, causing unnecessary strain.”
The minister emphasised that while grid collapses are expected to continue, the government is focused on reducing their frequency and ensuring quick restoration times.
He underscored that the collaboration especially with the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, is critical to addressing vandalism, which remains one of the most significant challenges facing the power sector.
The minister equally announced a N2trillion budget for the ministry and its agencies, out of which N229billion belongs to the ministry.
He revealed a N700billion fund allocated to the Power Metering Initiative (PMI), aimed at significantly reducing the metering gap by next month, to particularly enhance billing transparency and reduce fraud in the system.
“We recognise the issues with full or partial grid collapses, but our focus is on reducing the time it takes to restore power. We are actively collaborating with security agencies to achieve this,” Adelabu said.
The minister also disclosed plans to invest N36billion in the distribution of transformers across the six geopolitical zones.
As part of efforts to address insecurity, Adelabu has proposed the installation of solar lights and Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras on highways across the country, aimed at monitoring the movements of vandals and other criminal elements, enhancing security and protecting critical infrastructure.
The proposal is included under a N200billion sub-head in the 2025 budget.
