Nigeria’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), has said that of the 24 hours in a day, residents enjoy an average of only 6.8 hours electricity from national grid. Drawing from a survey published on Wednesday, the NBS said the report exposes the critical and epileptic power situation faced in the country.
The published survey, titled “Nigeria Living Standards Survey,” which was done in collaboration with the World Bank, involved responses collated from about 22,110 households nationwide.
The survey also discovered that in the remaining hours of the day, Nigerians either stay in the dark or adopt alternative energy sources, including power generating sets or solar systems.
The survey stated that slightly over 63% of households have access to electricity from various sources, and the numbers however vary depending on location.
For instance, in Taraba state, only 19.2% of households reported having electricity, compared with the over 98% of households with access to power in Lagos.
The 82.2% Nigerians, who reported that the national grid was the main source where they get electricity from, said they only enjoyed power for only 6.8% per day, while they run on generators for 4.1 hours per day.
The survey also stated that respondents confirmed that they experienced 10 blackouts in the past 7 days in an average duration of 12 hours in each instance.
Nigeria is endowed with large oil, gas, hydro and solar resource, and it already has the potential to generate 12,522 megawatts (MW) of electric power from existing plants, but most days is only able to generate around 4,000 MW, which is insufficient.
Power supply difficulties cripple the agricultural, industrial and mining sectors and impede the Nigeria’s ongoing economic development. The energy supply crisis is complex, stems from a variety of issues and has been ongoing for decades.
The power plant currently proposed would output around 10% of the country’s power which is twice as much as recommended. Nuclear energy also requires a stable energy grid to be maintained and that independent off site power is needed, which Nigeria does not have.
Chibisi Ohakah
Be the first to know when we publish an update
