1. ELECTRICITY IN NIGERIA – THE REASONS WHY IT MUST BE FIXED AND HOW
IT CAN BE FIXED
Over the years the world has been evolving, technology is connecting us in real time, the world is
becoming a global village, man is even exploring and living in space, but we in Nigeria are still fighting
an age old issue that must be resolved for the nation to move forward and take its place as the giant
of Africa.
This issue is electricity – 24hrs uninterrupted power supply to the whole country, this is very
achievable and in the shortest possible time. Unfortunately, the only way we can fix our electricity
issue is when we understand why it needs to be done as it is not only crucial for our nation’s next stage
of development and growth which will immediately impact the masses but it will also drastically
improve the standard of living and reduce unemployment in Nigeria.
Below I would try to list and explain some crucial reasons why Nigeria’s electricity problem must be
fixed as enough emphasis cannot be made on this issue till it is fixed:
REASONS WHY WE NEED TO HAVE 24HRS STEADY POWER SUPPLY IN NIGERIA
REVENUE GENERATION
The goal of the ministry of power shouldn’t be to provide a certain amount of MW to the national
grid at a certain time but it should be:
To ensure that no single Nigerian will need to generate electricity for themselves (No Need
for Generators).
Operating with a vision like this will enable the ministry understand its responsibility and what its
role/duty is to Nigeria. Another advantage of a solid goal like the one stated above is, the ministry of
power can easily do a rough calculation and see the potential revenue the industry can generate from
achieving this goal. For instance, if there are a 100 million buildings, shops, facilities, factories,
farms etc. that use electricity in Nigeria and the ministry of power is able to provide 24 hrs.
uninterrupted power supply at an average rate of N5000/month PHCN bill, we would have
100 million buildings * N5, 000/month = N500 billion/month (potential revenue/worth of
the power industry)
The above figure will continuously increase as development increases in the country, it will also
automatically phase out generators as the cost of power from the government will be a lot cheaper
than generators (average of N10,000/ month – fueling and maintenance cost) because the
government will be leveraging on economies of scale.
Also another one time revenue the nation will enjoy will be from the sale or export of used generators
as scrap or to other developing nations in need of them.

2. REDUCTION IN FUEL DEMAND
Currently we are told Nigeria consumes about 40 million liters of fuel daily, an alarming but false
figure as we currently consume a lot more possibly in the region of 150 – 250 million liters daily.
How? After all its not all Nigerians that have cars, true, but we forget that we also use fuel to generate
electricity which powers the nation and the poorer our electricity supply the higher our demand for
fuel which is the fastest alternative, hence the huge demand for fuel.
Let’s take a look at some rough numbers to see how huge and what this is currently costing the nation:
Nigeria has a population of about 200 million people, let’s assume 5% of our population is equal
to the total amount of cars in Nigeria – 10 million cars (this figure is a lot higher as houses and
businesses own multiple cars) and 10% of our population is equal to the total amount of fuel powered
generators in Nigeria – 20 million generators (also this figure is a lot higher as houses and businesses
also own multiple generators from - I better pass my neighbor to my neighbors better pass me), if
these two main users of fuel (cars and generators) both buy an average of 5 liters of fuel daily, we
would have a daily fuel consumption of
Cars – 10 million * 5 liters/day = 50 million liters/day
Generators – 20 million * 5 liters/day = 100 million liters/day
This brings our daily fuel consumption to about 150 million liters, comparing this very conservative
figure with the one being reported by the NNPC we see a huge difference of unaccounted and
unreported liters of fuel being sold of at least about 110 million liters/day. A lot of questions can be
raised or asked that will help tackle this corruption that is costing us money and why the NNPC
shouldn’t be remitting a lot more to the federal government that will be reflective of the real
consumption of fuel in Nigeria, but I would like to focus on the opportunities of this analysis and its
potential benefits to Nigerians and save it for a different article.
If we look back at my very conservative figures above, we can see that generators consume more fuel
than cars with a ratio of about 2 : 1 (it is very likely higher) hence the main contributor to the high
demand of fuel beyond the NNPC’s capacity and control.
NNPC over the years have and are currently indirectly playing the role of the ministry of power
because the power sector has continuously failed to see the huge revenues it is losing to the petroleum
industry because of its lackadaisical approach to managing the most crucial ministry in any economy.
The petroleum industry in a bid to fulfil and solve the nation’s power needs indirectly started
deregulating the power sector by providing Nigerians petroleum products needed to generate power
for themselves.
If the cost of running a generator a day is N500 and there are 20 million generators in Nigeria, we
have 10 billion Naira/day which is the minimum the petroleum industry is stealing from the power
sector.
Looking at this business model, you can easily see how much Nigeria is losing as a nation generally as
the petroleum industries business model requires it to remit monies to foreign refineries as we still
import the products we need to power Nigeria whereas if the ministry of power can generate power

3. and provide 24 hrs. uninterrupted power supply they will be able to keep all the revenues generated
for the government to use.
We would also reduce the pressure on the petroleum industry to meet the fuel needs of Nigerians as
it will have a lower demand because fuel is consumed solely by car owners.
DOLLAR DEMAND
We all know the highest user and spender of dollars in Nigeria is the government which the bulk of it
has been and is being used to pay for the import of petroleum products that are refined outside the
country. This method over the years has eroded and will still continue to erode the nation’s foreign
reserves, savings and it is also one of the biggest contributors to our over inflated dollar exchange rate
(price elasticity of demand).
The reduction in the volume of petroleum products being imported by the government will
tremendously be reduced hence a huge reduction in the governments demand for the dollar to
complete foreign trade transactions. The government can also now use such savings to fund other
capex projects in need of government attention which the Nigerian people would benefit from.
EMPLOYMENT, JOBS AND WEALTH CREATION
A telco in Nigeria once said that what it spends on power generation (diesel and fuel) is sufficient for
it to employ 150,000 workers nationwide annually, regardless of our view on this statement we can
easily see and we all know that the highest cost of doing business in Nigeria and biggest contributing
factor for business failure is power (electricity).
An economy with steady power supply has laid the solid foundation needed for Industries to spring
up, business ideas, innovations, e-commerce, communication, factories, hospitality, the list is
endless for possible areas that will experience immediate growth and a huge demand for labor force
will be required to drive this much needed growth and expansion.
There are a lot more reasons why Nigeria needs 24 hrs. uninterrupted power supply that can further
convince the government on why it needs to change its approach on tackling the nations power issue
and prioritize the government’s role in achieving this but I would like to delve into the HOW we can
achieve 24 hrs. uninterrupted power supply and to tell you that it is very possible and achievable within
the shortest time.
HOW NIGERIA CAN ACHIEVE 24 HRS. UNINTERRUPTED POWER SUPPLY
If the government clearly understands the reason why it needs to provide Nigerians with steady power
supply then its goal of achieving steady power supply is almost complete, How? Simple, this is an
industry with a potential worth of about N50 trillion annually and the nerve center of any thriving
economy.
One major advantage of a developing nation like Nigeria is our opportunity to learn from the
mistakes of developed nations and also leverage on their experience in executing similar projects.
There are companies all around the world generating and operating power plants effectively and
efficiently that can be contacted by the Nigerian government and mutually favorable contracts can be

4. brokered to execute similar projects in Nigeria within a specified time frame as specified by the
government.
Also synergies should be established between ministries in Nigeria so as to ensure maximum
value creation from existing resources needed to support the power sector, for instance
We can currently effectively explore 6 out of the 7 common sources of generating power globally,
they include: solar, hydro (water), wind, gas, coal, bio diesel, and nuclear.
SECURITY CHALLENGES
As regards security challenges, security outposts, police stations, barracks as well as trained security,
police or military operatives can be deployed to areas and sites where various power plants are to be
established in other to fulfil one of their oaths to the Nigerian people “to defend and protect lives and
property”. This will ensure that the lives of the workers and the plants are well protected and vandals
are also stopped before they carry out their dastardly acts.
INFORMATION
Also a media campaign should always be introduced to effectively inform and communicate the goals
of the ministry of power to the general public of the government’s plans to rid the nation of generators
for good by providing Nigerians and how it intends to supply the nation with 24hrs. uninterrupted
power supply. The campaign should also explain how the government intends to achieve this and how
it intends to involve the people and many more ways it intends to solicit for the people’s support
(there are really lot more strategies).
ministry
of
power
ministry of
petroleum (gas,
and other energy
resources)
ministry of
finance (funding
options, etc.)
other ministries
that manages
resources that
can be used to
generate power
ministry of solid
minerals (coal
exploration for
power
generation)

5. EXPERTISE
The government needs to start speaking (if they haven’t) with the global giants of the power industry
on long term mutually beneficial agreements to help achieve the government’s objective of providing
24 hrs. uninterrupted power supply in Nigeria. A current example of this is Dangote’s refinery in lekki
free trade zone which is nearing completion, this is a project we know is being pulled off by a single
man how much more a government that is credible and genuinely want to transform Nigeria.
The government needs to realize it has other resources that are more valuable than money that can be
traded for expertise, technology, machinery and development for the nation, this has nothing to do
with savings of a nation or how much money we can borrow or access to fund development. It is
simply a way for the government to look inward and explore the nation’s vast resources which
transcends tribe, religion, state or culture as all lands belongs to the federal government – this is how
a country starts to diversify its economy. The major question the government needs to ask every time,
before it engages in any major project is what its options are if this method does not work? And is it
in line with their overall objective which the government intends to achieve.
Problems are opportunities in disguise, PDP’s problems of poor administration became APC’s
opportunity to replace them. Use this opportunity wisely as this can easily be your fate come 2019 as
the people and the world is now watching thanks to our president’s frequent trips and technology
(social media).
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, I would like us to ponder on these few points of mine on the Nigerian electric/ power
sector with a very open mind because my goal in this article was to chart a new course on improving
our nation Nigeria starting with what I believe is the most crucial and important sector in our economy
(power sector). As citizens, I believe we each have an active role to play in developing our nation with
the best of our ability, knowledge and capacity. This is the best way to show our loyalty to our country
and support for our president and his team as they serve us with the best of their ability, knowledge
capacity while we play our role by giving them feedback on their employed methods in trying to
achieve the basic goal of making Nigeria a better country that we can all be proud of, because we and
our generations to come will forever be tied to this ship called Nigeria.
It is left for this generation to make a choice between
Self-interest and National interest (the nation always benefits)
Self-worth and Nation worth (A nation with real value)
Self-pride and National pride (A proud Nation)
We need to learn to put our nation first because it’s the easiest way to achieve our personal goals.
By Emmanuel Ikehi (B.Engr., MBA, AMBCS)
Emmanuel Ikehi is an experienced management consultant with over 12 years of various industry
experience in Nigeria ranging from consulting for SME’s to enable them setup effectively and

6. efficiently to being involved with turnkey projects for large organizations. He is currently the
CEO/Principal Consultant of EANL Consultants, a business and management consulting company
that is focused on empowering entrepreneurs with the right tools, trainings and skills to enable them
build successful businesses.