Why There Is Blackout In Oyo, Ogun, Kwara, Others – DisCo Explains

The Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) has explained the power outage in certain states within its coverage.

Naija News understands that there has been recent outrage over incessant blackouts in Oyo, Kwara, Ogun State, and neighbouring States.

However, in a statement issued over the weekend, Disco clarified the situation, saying approximately 1,450 incidents of energy theft were reported in the first two months of this year.

These cases are said to be the cause of the current power outages in Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Kwara, and parts of Kogi, Niger, and Ekiti states.

In the communique released yesterday in Ota, Ogun State, the Corporate Affairs Manager of IBEDC, Busolami Tunwase, highlighted that the persistent blackouts in these areas have resulted in disruptions and inconveniences for both residents and businesses.

The distribution company spokesperson also acknowledged the lamentations of the residents about the negative impact of heat waves on their health as a result of the power outages.

Additionally, she emphasized that one of the main contributing factors to the situation is the insufficient supply of gas to generating companies (GenCos), leading to a gradual reduction in available power generation for the grid.

Tunwase added: “This has significantly reduced the power available on the transmission grid for onward supply to IBEDC and, in turn, greatly hindered our ability to provide power to customers within our franchise, namely Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Kwara, and partly in Kogi, Niger, and Ekiti states.

“Secondly, scheduled maintenance activities conducted by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) in January and March 2024 necessitated planned outages in specific areas of our network.

“While these measures are essential for ensuring the long-term reliability of electricity infrastructure, we recognise the inconvenience they may cause and sincerely apologise for any disruptions experienced by our customers,” the IBEDC official was quoted as saying by The Nation.

The IBEDC spokesperson regretted that “vandalism and theft of electricity infrastructure and payment apathy from customers remain major issues negatively impacting power supply”.

“Despite these challenges, we remain optimistic that poor supply will soon become a thing of the past as Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, has taken urgent steps to address the gas supply issue.

“On energy theft and vandalism, we are currently partnering the security agencies to reduce this vice. However, we urge our customers to remain vigilant, protect electrical infrastructure within their communities and report any suspicious activities promptly.

“We are implementing comprehensive measures to improve and strengthen our infrastructure in order to efficiently distribute the power we receive from the grid.

“We are also urgently exploring alternate sources of power to enable us to meet the power supply needed within our franchise,” Tunwase stressed.