The Federal Government said on Wednesday that it was now “very difficult to sustain subsidy on electricity” as the country’s power debt continued to soar.
Adebayo Adelabu, Minister of Power, stated that Nigeria must begin to move toward a cost-effective pricing model, revealing that the country is currently in debt to electricity generating businesses to the tune of N1.3 trillion, with a debt to gas companies of $1.3 billion.
The minister addressed at a press conference in Abuja that was attended by the chiefs of all agencies under the Federal Ministry of Power.
Adelabu noted that just N450 billion was allotted for electricity subsidies in the 2024 budget, but that the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission found that subsidies would consume about N2.9 trillion this year.
He emphasized that the electricity sector problem had been extremely complex, with the national grid collapsing approximately six times between December 2023 and today.
According to him, this was caused by a lack of gas, aging equipment in the grid value chain, insufficient capacity to evacuate generated electricity, and the destruction of power stations in some areas of the country’s North-East geopolitical zone.