The power sector in Nigeria has again highlighted the paradox that has defined its electricity supply chain, marked by significant installed generation capacity but little actual output, which was as low as 41 per cent in July.
The latest factsheet from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) covering operational performance of power plants showed that of the country’s 13,625MW of installed power capacity, only 5,577MW was available on average last month.
The data underscored the growing problem of stranded power, with several plants lying idle or underutilised, while households and industries continue to suffer chronic power shortages nationwide.
Despite having a capacity large enough to substantially power its economy, the report showed that Nigeria only managed to deliver just 4,340 MWh/h in July, with an average load factor of 78 per cent, a slight dip of 3 per cent from the previous month.
In simpler terms, this means that more than half of the electricity generation infrastructure capacity remained stranded during the period.
