The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has announced that electricity will be restored to northern Nigeria within 72 hours.
Speaking to senators on Tuesday, Adelabu addressed the widespread outages affecting the region and recent national grid failures.
The Transmission Company of Nigeria previously reported that, on October 22, the 330-kilovolt (kV) Ugwaji-Apir transmission lines tripped, causing outages across the North-East, North-West, and parts of North-Central Nigeria.
Independent System Operator Executive Director Nafisatu Ali confirmed that insurgents vandalized the Shiroro-Kaduna line, which is a critical power source for northern regions.
In response, President Bola Tinubu has directed military support to safeguard repairs.
Adelabu explained that, as a temporary solution, power will be supplied through the Ugwuaji-Makurdi line, which can cover about 80% of affected states.
“Power will be restored to the North in two to three days. We will use the Ugwuaji-Makurdi transmission line for temporary purpose,” Adelabu assured.
Additionally, he noted that security agencies are actively working to access the vandalized grid area. Full restoration is expected within 14 days once repairs on the damaged lines are complete.
“We are working with security agencies to access the grid currently occupied by vandals.
“I assure you that within the next 14 days, the repairs will be completed, and power will be fully restored to the North,” Adelabu added.
