Nigerians Spend N150bn on Electricity Annually’

An advocate for steady and sustainable power supply in Nigeria, Mr. Festus Mbisiogu, has revealed that Nigerians spend over N150 billion every year on generating their own electricity for office and home use.

Mbisiogu, who made this known at a press conference in Lagos recently, said Nigerians were losing huge amount to what the government should ordinarily provide for its citizens, adding that if such money was put into the economy, it would bring in more development.

According to him, the federal government must act to prevent the continuous loss of hard earned money of its citizens, as this has also caused intending investors and businesses to rather ply their trade in countries where constant power supply is guaranteed.

“It is very possible to have uninterrupted power supply in the country if the government and the private investors managing the power sector no longer consider it business as usual,” he added.

While stating that about 65 million Nigerians still lack access to electricity even with the unbundling of Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) to 10 Distribution Companies (Disco) and five Generating Companies (GENCO), he called on President Muhammadu  Buhari to review government’s relationship with these private investors through improved monitoring, evaluation and setting of targets, which they must meet if they want to continuously be of service to the citizens.

He said there should be a clear policy that tasks investors on giving Nigerians certain amounts of mega watts, which would form part of their evaluation, adding that in line with President Buhari’s disciplinary style, stringent measures should be put in place for them to work with.

According to him, “Most of these distribution and generating companies will tell you they have the intention of increasing electricity supply in Nigerians but that they are constrained by gas pipeline vandalisation and other external factors.

“But the truth is that these investors already know this before they bided to take over PHCN, so they should stop giving excuses and move into action. Nigerians believed in them when they came in, so they must justify that trust by giving the citizens electricity.”

However, he said despite the shortcomings of the investors, government owes its citizens the responsibility of protecting pipelines and providing an enabling environment for them to work. “President Buhari should provide necessary elements for them to succeed, including protection of our gas pipes from saboteurs and introduction of  innovative technology for tackling the menace of vandals,” he stated.
Mbisiogu said these plans were necessary if Nigeria must meet its target of producing 40,000 mega watts by 2020. He also called on the president to open doors to other sources of energy, including coal, solar and waste.
On why there has been a sudden improvement in the power situation in the country, he said President Buhari may not have done anything directly, but that his posture as a disciplinarian must have prompted these players to buckle up, which has translated into the increased power generation experienced.