From Victor Osula Abuja
The Federal Government has apologised to Nigerians over the recent widespread blackout across the country, assuring citizens that relief is imminent as efforts intensify to restore a stable electricity supply within the next two weeks.
Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, made the apology on Tuesday during a press briefing in Abuja, acknowledging the severe impact of the outages on households, businesses, schools, and industries, especially amid the scorching dry-season heat.
“I want to apologise to Nigerians, officially now, coming from me as the Minister of Power, for this temporary issue that is leading to hardship being experienced, especially during this dry season, where there is so much heat everywhere,” Adelabu said.
He noted that the disruptions have worsened living conditions nationwide, stressing that although the situation was not intentional, it stemmed from a combination of factors largely beyond the immediate control of the government.
“Businesses are being affected, schools have been affected, and industries have been affected. It is not our wish to find ourselves in this situation, but it is due to some factors that are actually beyond our control,” he added.
Providing a timeline for recovery, the minister assured that Nigerians would begin to see noticeable improvements in electricity supply within two weeks, following coordinated interventions involving gas suppliers and infrastructure repairs.
“I can tell you, with the committee that we have set up, and commitments from gas suppliers, and the timeline for repair of the gas pipelines, two weeks from now, we should start seeing improvements in supply. Two weeks,” Adelabu said.
He explained that critical repair works, including those linked to facilities operated by Seplat Energy, are nearing completion and are expected to restore gas flow to power generation companies, thereby boosting electricity output to the national grid.
According to the minister, a dedicated committee has been established to monitor compliance by gas producers with domestic supply obligations—an issue that has historically constrained power generation in the country.
“We already have a committee that is working on this to track compliance with the domestic supply obligations of these gas companies to our power plants,” he said, adding that improved payment frameworks are also being introduced to incentivise increased gas supply.
Adelabu acknowledged that Nigeria’s electricity sector continues to grapple with systemic challenges, including gas shortages, pipeline maintenance issues, and financial constraints affecting operators across the value chain.
Despite these hurdles, he emphasised that the government is working around the clock to stabilise the grid and return the sector to its recent trajectory of improved performance.
“We are working on it 24/7 to make sure that we go back to the trajectory of 2025, when Nigerians commended us for a good job well done,” he stated.
Reiterating the Federal Government’s broader reform agenda, the minister reaffirmed the target to increase electricity generation to 6,000 megawatts before the end of 2026, describing the current outage as a temporary setback.
“Power generation will improve, transmission will improve, distribution will improve, and that 6,000 megawatts will be achieved before the end of this year, and Nigerians will be better for it,” he assured.
He added that beyond restoring supply, the government is determined to surpass previous performance levels and deliver more reliable electricity to Nigerians.
“If we could provide such service in 2025, this is 2026, we are willing to do more, to even do better,” Adelabu said.
