The Ever-growing Crises in Nigeria’s Energy Sector

By Randy Aneke

“Up NEPA!” It is funny how these two short words are packed with enough power to control the hearts of over 200 million Nigerians. Whether you’re walking along the road or you’re in your bedroom sleeping, at the mention of those two words, an unexplainable joy fills the heart.

I remember the times when I was still a student in primary and secondary school, walking back home and seeing “light” in the bulbs of my neighbour’s house would fill me with so much joy and energy that I would find myself running, non-stop, all the way home. Every Nigerian student, back then, had that one home where they can confirm, that yes: “mommy Esther’s house is having light… so we have light!”

It has now been a little over 10 years, and I wish I could lay back and say “I miss the good old days of suspense and anticipation.” I want to say that “NEPA”, no longer has control over the levels of my happiness. I want to say that now, when I head home late at night, from work, I do not indulge in the occasional “sideways glance” at the houses in the streets leading to my home, to check if there’s light. I want to say that after getting the confirmation from those houses, I do not wind up with an unexplainable joyful feeling and end up speeding up so I can get home faster. I want to say I have outgrown all these things… but it turns out that I and over 200 million Nigerians have not, either.

In the words of Samuel Johnson: “Praise, like gold and diamond, owes its value only to its scarcity.” The value placed on electricity, by Nigerians, is as a result of its lack of availability!

From grid failures, to the increase in electricity bills, to the subsidy removal leading to the hike and scarcity of hydrocarbon mineral fuels (petrol, diesel, etc.), the unrest in the Energy sector looks to be increasing daily. The consistent failure of politicians to uphold their campaign promises leaves Nigerians in the dark (literally and figuratively).

With the inflation of market goods steadily on the rise, sentences like “can’t you see that there is no fuel… or… dollar don increase o”, never seem to leave the lips of traders — sometimes you cannot help but ask yourself how the scarcity of fuel affects the cup of garri or the little soup ingredients you want to buy.

The economy of Nigeria seem to be regressing yearly due to the lapse in governance. We are left with the questions of: “how low can we fall?” All of these are happening despite Nigeria being a major force in the global oil industry. However, the presence of gross mismanagement and corruption has played a major role in hampering the growth of the Nigeria’s energy sector and economy, with Nigeria’s budget closely tied to the prices of crude oil, due to their one-dimensional revenue generation, the fluctuations in the price (of crude oil) dictates how and what the shape of the economy would be.

It was reported in 2019 by The Nation, that “Nigeria loses $29.3 billion yearly due to erratic power supply”, also, The Punch tells us “The Nation’s power firms are weak, technically bankrupt.” The Vanguard also adds that “Economy bleeds as power generation drops to 2,039 MW.” A production of a mere 2,039 MW for a country with over 200 million citizens is nothing to write about. Let us take a look at the small Caribbean twin island of Trinidad and Tobago, this country generates 2,200 MW in their national grid. This a country with less that 2milliom citizens, which is less than 1% of Nigeria’s population.  

A research shows that over 80 million Nigerians in rural areas are without access to electricity and over 40 million Nigerians have limited supply of electricity, estimated to be about 4 hours of electricity per day on average. The national grid is so fragile, poorly maintained and old that too much generation or too little generation can lead to a collapse. In terms of access per states, about 14 states out of a possible 36 still have an access rate of below 40 person. A figure that World Bank deems too low. In a report made by World Bank, Nigeria is ranked second worst in the global electricity access chart. At least Naija no dey carry last!

The catastrophic nature of energy supply in rural areas is one of the main causes of deforestation in the country. With their main source of fuel being firewood, the trees which the environment benefit from are chopped down and burned, there by endangering the animals and also polluting the air with the fumes. According to a report by the International Committee on Combating Deforestation and Desertification: the rate of deforestation in Nigeria is estimated to be almost 350,000 hectares per year, which is almost 3.6% of the current areas of forests and woodlands.

The Nigerian electricity and gas/petroleum prices are managed by The Power Holding Company of Nigeria (formerly known as NEPA) and Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), respectively. These two institutions have spearheaded the demise of the economy in Nigeria by not only failing to improve on its already degrading structures but also in its implementation of ridiculous polities at the detriment of the average Nigerian.

There is now an increasing need for change and development. Nigerians have picked up on the fact that their over reliance on these two institutions shows limited promise. With “electricity” being important in the nation’s development — in education, health care services, communication, manufacturing, clean water access, etc. the call for the mass adoption of renewable energy and the need for diversification is now at its all-time high.