Electricity Distribution Companies have apologised to Nigerians for the persistent power shortages nationwide, acknowledging the hardship caused by weeks of prolonged blackouts.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors Sunday Oduntan, tendered the apology on Monday while speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily.
“I’d like to first of all start by apologising to Nigerians. Apology is needed; it is essential because Nigerians have been taken through this problem over the past few weeks,” he said.
Oduntan also criticised the renewed blame game among operators in the electricity sector, noting that similar disagreements among stakeholders plagued the industry between 2016 and 2019.
He recalled that distribution companies, transmission operators, generation companies and gas suppliers had previously traded accusations over poor electricity supply rather than addressing the sector’s underlying challenges.
“Our major problem is that we have started that very wrong route that we went through between 2016 and 2019. What is that? Blame game.
“Part of what happened at that time is that people will blame the DisCos, DisCos will blame TCN, TCN will blame GenCos, GenCos will blame the gas suppliers, and gas suppliers will blame payment issues. We have returned to that, and I think there is a need to arrest that,” he said.
The ANED spokesperson also raised concerns over statements by the Nigerian Independent System Operator and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited on the causes of the persistent electricity shortages.
He said NISO had blamed the supply challenges partly on low water levels and insufficient gas supply, while the NNPC later issued a statement indicating that gas was available.
However, Oduntan questioned the national oil company’s position, calling on it to clarify whether outstanding payments were affecting gas supplies to power generation companies.
“From the NNPC statement, it is very clear that they came to tell us half-truths. What I would have expected NNPC to do is to go ahead and talk to us whether there are payment issues. We need to know whether gas was paid for and delivered, who did, who didn’t,” he said.
