By Obas Esiedesa, Abuja

Nigeria’s national power grid managed by the Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, collapsed yesterday, the 11th time in 2024, leaving the country in complete blackout.

Data from the National System Operator, NSO, showed that as of 2pm yesterday none of Nigeria’s 26 power plants was on the grid.

Prior to that time, checks at about 1pm showed that 15 plants were on the grid generating a combined 3,087MW, with Egbin generating 666MW, Jebba Hydro at 427MW and Azura-Edo IPP at 379MW as top four power plants.

The latest collapse came despite a directive by the Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, for full implementation of the recommendations made by the ministry’s committee set up to resolve the challenges faced by the grid.

After the 10th  collapse, the Minister promised that short, medium and long term measures would be taken to curb incessant electricity grid collapses.

Meanwhile, electricity distribution companies, DiscCos, confirmed the incident on their social media handles while assuring consumers that they were working with stakeholders to restore the grid.

Abuja DisCo in a post on its X (twitter) stated: “Dear Valued Customers, we wish to inform you that a system disturbance occurred on the national grid at 1:32pm today causing power outage across our franchise areas. While gradual restoration of power supply has commenced, be assured that we are coordinating closely with relevant stakeholders to restore power fully as soon as the grid is stabilized”.

Eko DisCo in Lagos posted: “Dear valued customer, kindly be informed there was a reported case of system disturbance on 11th December, 2024 at 13:32hrs which has resulted in a loss of power supply across our network. We are currently working with our partners as we hope for speedy restoration of the grid. We will keep you updated as soon as power supply is restored. Kindly bear with us”.
How grid collapse impacts our operations — GenCos

In a note on frequent collapse of the national grid, the Chief Executive, Association of Power Generation Companies (APGC), Dr. Joy Ogaji highlighted the significant mechanical and commercial impacts of grid collapses on generation companies (GenCos).

Although the full industry-wide impact on GenCos is yet to be quantified, Dr. Ogaji revealed that the Kainji and Jebba hydro plants alone have incurred losses of N21.87 billion due to system instability this year.

“Grid collapse poses a significant threat to Nigeria’s power sector, resulting in frequent disruptions, equipment damage, and substantial revenue losses for GenCos. Technically, grid collapse can cause catastrophic damage to generators, transformers, and other critical infrastructure, leading to prolonged downtime and costly repairs”.

In a continuation of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) increased scrutiny of fintech startups, two of the country’s most prominent unicorns, Moniepoint and OPay, were fined ₦1 billion each in the second quarter of 2024, sources with direct knowledge of the matter told TechCabal. While several other fintech companies were also penalized, the two firms were the hardest hit.

The penalties followed a routine CBN audit of the fintech sector, which revealed compliance issues. According to two sources familiar with the process, these regulatory checks are a standard procedure for banks and financial institutions under CBN oversight.

At least four other fintech companies were similarly penalized, though the details of these fines remain unknown.

The CBN has increasingly relied on fines to enforce regulatory compliance. In 2023, Nigerian banks paid a combined ₦678 million in penalties. In October 2024, the central bank and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) imposed a ₦15 billion fine on ten commercial banks, including Zenith and GTBank, for various infractions in the first half of the year.

Until recently, Nigeria’s rapidly growing fintech sector largely operated without CBN interference. However, the rapid expansion of fintechs like OPay and Moniepoint, which now serve millions of users, has invited greater scrutiny. OPay, for instance, claims a customer base of around 40 million, while Moniepoint, which processed 5.2 billion transactions in 2023, does not disclose specific customer numbers but is similarly large.

Kindly follow  Ekwutosblog for verified News and Current Affairs in addition to insightful contents that inform, inspire, educate and entertain you always.

Rehabilitation Of Ajaokuta Steel Plant To Commence In Q1 2025 – Natasha Akpoti

Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, chairman senate committee on local content, says plans are underway to kick-start the revitalisation of the Ajaokuta Steel Company plants in the first quarter (Q1) of 2025.

In September, Shuaibu Audu, minister of steel development, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the builders of the Ajaokuta steel plant, Messrs Tyazhpromexport (TPE), for the rehabilitation, completion, and operation of the plant and the National Iron Ore Mining Company (NIOMCO).

Speaking on Tuesday at the ongoing Practical Nigerian Content Forum organised by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) in Bayelsa state, Akpoti-Uduaghan said the federal government has located the main constructors of the steel to revamp it and keep it running.

She assured that work would commence on the steel company next year.

“I would like to give credit to the president, who has committed extensive political will in ensuring that the Ajaokuta Steel Company has been connected with the original builders,” Akpoti-Uduaghan said.

“A certain number of MoUs and agreements have been undertaken, and in the first quarter of next year, we are hoping that the Tyajz Prom Export, who are the original builders of the plant, will be on the ground to kick-start the revitalisation of the steel plant.

“That means we are setting ourselves, our country, strategically to begin to manufacture the core components and machines that are utilised in the oil and gas sector.”

The senator further said for every deep water operation, rigs are utilised and the cheapest rig stands at about $10 million while some go as much as $25 million.

“And what actually makes up a rig? Steel. So, just imagine, count how many rigs you have in Nigerian waters. Imagine if we had those rigs manufactured in-country,” she said.

“That means we would have saved so much money and we would have created so many jobs.”

Akpoti-Uduaghan also said breaking new frontiers requires both strategic vision and boldness, adding that the journey ahead may be challenging, but “it is essential”.