By Fatima Muraina & Akinnodi Francis

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To end incidences of power failure or blackout in the country, there is the need for total restructuring of the nation’s power sector or unbundling of the Discos along state lines.

Today, there are some Discos controlling up to seven states, with incessant blackout and epileptic electricity supply.

Some stakeholders have said persistent energy crisis in Nigeria has dealt a severe blow to businesses, causing shutdowns, hampering productivity and escalating operational expenses.

They noted that Nigeria stood at a critical crossroads with businesses shutting down due to poor power supply and the relentless surge in fuel costs, adding that the impact on the economy and the lives of ordinary citizens was severe and required immediate attention.

Restructuring of the power sector or unbundling of the Discos along state lines is believed would bring about efficiency in power generation and supply.

These, among others, were the submissions of some stakeholders who bore their minds on the poor state of power generation and supply in the country.

Those who spoke with The Hope in separate interviews are a Professor of Political Science, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko (AAUA), Lanre Olu-Adeyemi and the State Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources, Razaq Obe.

A week ago, virtually all major towns across Ondo state experienced total blackout for about one week.

Prof. Olu-Adeyemi, described as sad that 63 years after independence, the country could not still generate enough power for distribution in the country.

The don who said he was in Akoko for an event and observed that people in the area have not seen electricity in the last three months.

He, however, expressed hope that with the unbundling of Discos along state lines, state governments will have opportunity to take the bull by the horn and generate electricity for their people.

“For me, I think the type of federalism we practice is at fault. The cosmetic arrangements will never emplace the states in their proper position.

“It is not rocket science to generate electricity, and we have been on this for over 30-40 years. What we generate wholesale at the national level is not up to what some components state or some other federation generate and use. I won’t put the blame on the Discos because you can only distribute what is available, what has been generated. Discos are not generating electricity, they are just to redistribute and to make money.

“Our expectation is that state governments will take the bull by the horn and try to generate electricity for the consumption of their people. Not only state governments, even institutions. We expect them to tap into alternative sources of power to cushion the overall burden, especially since what we get from the national grid has not been encouraging. It has actually been going down rather than getting increased over time.

We need to tackle corruption in the power sector. That is fundamental. If we can tackle the issue of corruption in Nigeria, many of these things will fall in place.

He explained that both unbundling and privatization of the Discos have their own advantages, saying “if you unbundle, you create opportunities for more people to participate in power generation. If you have enough power that have been generated, you will create opportunities for Discos to generate more and make money.

“How many of our buildings in Nigeria are metered by the way? In some of our neighbouring African countries, they have gone beyond this stage. They have been able to account for whatever electricity they consume.

It is not now that some people will be giving estimated billing and some of the people that are given estimated billing will not even allow you to have access to meters because once you have access to meters you have blocked their own access to corruption.

“We need to ensure that every building, private and public, is metered. Thank God for prepaid meter these days, you consume what you have bought. Once we do away with all these phases of corruption in that sector everybody will be paying for the services, the products they have consumed.

But the important thing is that this power must be available. It’s like saying that seek first the kingdom of stable electricity in Nigeria and every other thing will follow”, Prof Olu-Adeyemi emphasised.

On his part, the State Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources, Razaq Obe, explained that the state is taking the bull by the horn and that so much work is ongoing in the state to reposition power sector and ensure its effective and efficient generation and supply to the people.

According to the Commissioner, the unbundling of Discos by the Federal Government and signing of the Electricity Act 2023 by President Bola Tinubu officially gave control of everything in the electricity market and everything about electricity sector within the state to the government of the state.

“Before President Buhari left he signed the constitutional amendment that now changed how we operate electricity system in the country, that State government will now have control over areas currently  covered by the national grid. It is a previous law even though electricity was not on the Exclusive List as some people suggested. It was on the Concurrent List where the role holding the control is still in  the hand of the Federal Government because you could not act in the area.

“But that disappears and only closely as President Tinubu came in within some few months he also signed the Electricity Act 2023, that the act officially gave State control of everything in the electricity market and everything about electricity sector within the state to the government of the state, and Ondo State took steps to become the first state in the country to apply to Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission to see the power to have oversight power on the electricity market in Ondo State. 

“After we did that, a couple of states followed and about two weeks ago or thereabouts, Ondo State became the first among the states. We were three that were given the license, others are Enugu and Ekiti States who already have the regulatory role.

“As time goes on, we shall detach ourselves from this national grid dependence, and that is what the state is focusing on to begin to have energy where we have a market with license, and power is generated in that neighborhood and supply directly to them.

“Remember some of these things don’t happen overnight. The good news is that the journey has commenced unlike before that we were just at the middle of nowhere, we did not have any regulatory framework to  work with, we did not have power to act but now if someone wants to generate power in Ondo State you must be talking to Ondo State government through its Electricity Regulatory Bureau.

“That is a big news, it is a big development for our country and it means that, there will be superior efficiency because you know if you don’t do it right you have people right here who are going to be asking questions,” he stressed.

Some business owners in the state have equally lamented over epileptic power supply and petrol hike, which have led to skeletal operations, low patronage and gradual shutdown.

Mrs Yetunde Oladejo who sells soft drinks in Akure said she closed her shop due to lack of electricity and cannot afford powering his refrigerators with generators.

He said, “My capital is not more than N200,000 and what I am getting from the business cannot sustain it if I use a generator to power the refrigerators. And people will not buy if it is not cold.”

A welder, Olawale Fola, said that the twin calamity of irregular power supply and the rising cost of fuel in the country were gradually pushing him away from making ends meet.

He said the price hike had increased his operational cost and squeezed profit margin. “As machine operators, we rely heavily on power, but as fuel price rise, our daily operational expenses also rose.”

A hair-dressing salon owner, Ayo Omo-Ade, said,”Irregular power supply and expensive fuel had limited her working hours because of the cost implications.

“I close my shops earlier than usual in this era of increased price of fuel and abnormal power supply for her business to thrive.”

According to an economic expert, Sanya Ogunsakin, Nigeria’s power supply has long been plagued by inefficiency and chronic underinvestment.

Ogunsakin noted that to secure a brighter future for Nigerian businesses and the nation’s economy, concerted efforts from the government, private sector and other stakeholders were needed to address the energy crisis and chart a path towards sustainable growth and development.