The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has said that Nigeria’s electricity sector recorded a loss of N15.4 billion in the second quarter of 2022, from the N134.19 billion it recorded in the corresponding period of 2021.It explained that it contracted by 11.48 per cent year-on-year in real terms.
According to the report, this is consistent with the 11.2 per cent contraction recorded in the previous quarter (Q1’22). This is contained in the latest GDP report for the second quarter of 2022 released by NBS.
The sector, which was stated as electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning supply by NBS, recorded impressive growth in the previous year, following a hike in electricity tariff rate. However, according to the reports, multiple grid disruptions and the global energy crisis dampened productivity in the sector. It said: “The electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply sector contributed 1.39 per cent to the nominal GDP in Q2’22, a 0.33 per centpoint decrease from the corresponding period in 2021. However, this was an improvement from the previous quarter’s 0.38 per cent.
“In real terms, the sector saw a negative growth rate of 11.48 per cent, a decline from the 78.16 per cent recorded in the corresponding period of 2021. “On the other hand, the aggregate GDP of the sector grew by 263.1 per cent on a quarter-on-quarter basis.” The contraction recorded in the electricity sector was attributed to multiple grid shutdowns, which saw a large part of the country witness blackouts.
In 2022 alone, the national power grid has collapsed eight times, with the most recent coming on the July 20. The national grid failures inevitably led to power cuts, which meant fewer people purchase electricity. Also, the first half of the year was ravaged by high gas prices, which was cited as one of the major factors causing the grid collapses. Gas prices following the Russian- Ukraine war surged significantly across the country, as a result of a drop in supply. The national had collapsed about eight times since 2022. On June 12, 2022, the national grid collapsed for the fifth time in four months.
According to data sourced from the National Electricity Systems Operator (NESO), energy generated was 68856.37MW while 67790.1MW was sent out. Nigeria Electricity System Operator is an arm of the Federal Government’s power transmission company. The report added that peak generation was 3703MW while the lowest generation was 9MW.
