The Nigeria Labour Congress has rejected the Federal Government’s proposed N6 trillion bailout for power generation companies, describing it as a short-term fix that does not address Nigeria’s deep-rooted energy crisis.

NLC President Joe Ajaero said the power sector remains a heavy burden on Nigerians, accusing elites of profiteering through subsidy claims and high tariffs while citizens “pay for darkness.”

The labour union said the bailout reflects deeper structural problems and called for a bold reform, including merging the Federal Ministries of Petroleum and Power into a single Ministry of Energy. The NLC argued that this would improve accountability, break silos, and prioritise domestic power supply over private profit.

“The NLC, therefore, calls on the Federal Government to; initiate the process of merging the Ministry of Petroleum and the Ministry of Power into a single Ministry

The labour union said the bailout reflects deeper structural issues and called for radical reforms, including merging the Federal Ministries of Petroleum and Power into a single Ministry of Energy.

The NLC said the move would break silos, improve accountability, and prioritise domestic electricity supply over private profit, while also urging the government to halt the proposed N6tn bailout to GenCos.

Up to 16 of Nigeria’s 33 power plants went offline in mid-March 2026 due to gas supply cuts linked to over N3tn in unpaid debts. Power output dropped to 3,700–4,000 MW from 4,000–5,500 MW, far below 13,000+ MW capacity, while GenCos cite N6.5tn in total debts as worsening the crisis.

“For too long, these two critical ministries have operated in silos, serving the interests of separate factions of the bourgeoisie while the productive base of our economy collapses,” the union said.

“The nation’s thermal power generation, which accounts for the bulk of our grid capacity, is held hostage by gas supply gaps. This gas is controlled by an industry, the petroleum sector, that operates like a rent-seeking enclave with no accountability to the people’s need for electricity.”

The NLC criticised the government for prioritising gas exports for foreign exchange over domestic supply, while the Power Ministry struggles to secure feedstock to keep electricity running.

The labour body said a unified Ministry of Energy would make one minister accountable for both petroleum and electricity, ending blame-shifting and excuses based on market forces. It added that the merger would enable integrated planning, prioritise gas for power generation, and drive jobs through industrial growth.

Ajaero also said it would support fairer electricity pricing by replacing the “cost-reflective” model with tariffs tied to actual service delivery.