Attempts by the current administration to rely on increased electricity tariffs to resolve Nigeria’s chronic power supply issues are unlikely to succeed, according to energy expert Nick Agu.
Speaking during an interview on Arise TV on Tuesday, Agu argued for a fundamental restructuring of the power sector, prioritising infrastructure over tariff hikes.
Responding to the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu’s optimism and recent celebration of Nigeria reaching a new peak generation of over 5,000 megawatts, Agu acknowledged the incremental increase as “a good thing, is good news.”
However, he quickly added, “But should we celebrate? The answer is probably not.”
Agu underscored Nigeria’s severe “energy poverty” by drawing comparisons with other nations.
He noted that while Nigeria, with over 200 million people, struggles with around 5,000 megawatts, South Africa (65 million people) boasts 55,000 megawatts, Brazil (200 million people) supplies 150,000 megawatts, and even Qatar (3 million people) provides 8,000 megawatts.
“So, you can see that three million people are enjoying more electricity than Nigeria, which has 200 million people,” he highlighted.
The core of the problem, Agu explained, lies in the underdeveloped and poorly managed transmission and distribution networks.
He cited reports of transmission equipment being “50 years old (and) unserviceable,” preventing generated power from reaching consumers.
He directly challenged the Minister’s approach, stating, “First of all, let me be very honest with the Minister for Power that tariffs are not going to give us 24/7 electricity that he is hoping for.”
Instead, Agu advised President Tinubu and his Minister to “structurally deal with transmission so that transmission can expand capacity.”
He drew a parallel to Nigeria’s successful telecoms privatisation under President Obasanjo, where licenses were awarded to existing operators with significant investment capacity, leading to a massive expansion of services.
“The electricity companies have not invested that hundred billion dollars that the telecoms companies did.
That is where the real issue is, and that is what the Minister should be focusing on, and not tariffs,” Agu concluded, urging a focus on attracting major international investors to overhaul the ailing infrastructure.
Source: The Punch
