The Federal Government of Nigeria has attributed recent electricity supply disruptions in Lagos, Abuja, Ogun, Kwara and Oyo states to gas shortages, maintenance challenges and reduced output from hydropower plants.

Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, acknowledged the disruptions, assuring electricity consumers that the government was working with relevant agencies to restore stable supply.

In a statement issued on Thursday, November 5, 2026, by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Adeola Adelabu, Tegbe said preliminary assessments indicated that the outages were not caused by a major or systemic failure of the national grid.

He explained that maintenance and operational challenges across parts of the electricity value chain, coupled with inadequate gas supply to thermal power stations and reduced water inflows into hydropower reservoirs, had affected electricity generation.

The minister said he had engaged the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) and electricity distribution companies to address the challenges and accelerate ongoing maintenance works.

He acknowledged the difficulties faced by households, businesses and public institutions as a result of the reduced electricity supply, promising that efforts were underway to restore normal service.

Meanwhile, electricity distribution companies received a combined allocation of 2,926 megawatts as of 4:41 pm on Thursday, November 5, according to the latest distribution figures.

Abuja Electricity Distribution Company received the highest allocation of 633MW, followed by Ibadan Disco with 391MW and Port Harcourt Disco with 320MW.

Benin Disco received 264MW, while Eko Disco and Enugu Disco were allocated 256MW and 253MW, respectively. Ikeja Disco received 249MW.

Kano Disco received 173MW, Kaduna Disco 167MW and Jos Disco 146MW, while Yola Disco recorded the lowest allocation of 74MW.

The figures represent electricity allocated to the distribution companies at the stated time and do not necessarily reflect the actual supply delivered to consumers.

In a related development, the Federal Government has facilitated the release of 44 containers of electricity equipment that had been stranded at the Apapa ports in Lagos.

According to Tegbe, more than 300 containers of power equipment had remained at the ports, with some dating as far back as 2014.

He said the release of the first 44 containers followed a directive from President Bola Tinubu after the last Federal Executive Council meeting, instructing the Ministry of Power to work with the Nigeria Customs Service and the Nigerian Ports Authority to resolve outstanding issues.

The minister explained that technical experts would inspect the recovered equipment to determine its condition before deployment.

He added that usable items would be allocated to ongoing electricity projects, while equipment deemed unserviceable would be disposed of appropriately.

The development follows the recovery of 110 abandoned containers and 216 packages by the Niger Delta Power Holding Company under its Managing Director, Jennifer Adighije.

That exercise reportedly saved more than N30bn and helped unlock approximately 470MW of electricity generation capacity through the recovery of turbines.

The Federal Government expects the latest recovery of electricity equipment to provide additional resources for ongoing power infrastructure projects, although the specific contents and deployment timeline of the 44 containers have not been disclosed.

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