Pipeline Vandalism Threatening Stable Supply Of Power—NERC

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission has said that the acts of vandalism of gas pipelines remains a threat to stable power supply.

The Commission said this its latest quarterly Report obtained in Abuja.

THE WHISTLER analysis of the Report shows that gas dominated the electricity generation mix, accounting for 73.45 per cent of the electricity generated during the first quarter of 2020.

This implies that approximately 7.35kWh of every 10kWh of electricity generated in Nigeria in the period came from gas.

“Relative to the preceding quarter, there was 6.43 percentage points decrease in the share of electric energy generated from hydro which accounted for 26.55 per cent of the total energy output,” the Report stated.

The declining share of hydro generation, according to Report was attributed to low rainfall and water management at the hydropower stations during the quarter.

NERC, however, noted the need to work with other key stakeholders in NESI to develop regulatory interventions and implement policy actions necessary for the actualisation of improved energy mix through coal–to–power generation, and on-grid/off-grid renewables, to ensure increase in generation fuel mix.

It added, “At the off-grid level, the Commission’s constant engagement with the Rural Electrification Agency indicates that potential investors have continued to take advantages of the opportunities created by the Mini-Grid Regulations.

“To further improve the grid stability and prevent system collapse in subsequent quarters and beyond, the Commission in collaboration with the TCN shall intensify efforts to ensure further improvement in
the grid performance.”

The report also shows a significant decline in DisCos’ billing performance, as the level of DisCos’ billing efficiency shows that, for every 10kWh of energy received by DisCos from in the first quarter of this year, approximately 2.16kWh was lost to technical inefficiencies and energy theft.

“For every N10 worth of electricity
received by DisCos during the first quarter of 2020, approximately N2.16 was lost due to energy theft and poor distribution infrastructure”.

A breakdown of the report shows that Ikeja DisCo had the highest billing efficiency of 90.45 per cent, followed by Eko DisCo
with 88.11 per cent.

On the other hand, Yola DisCo recorded the lowest billing efficiency at 48.01 per cent, indicating that the DisCo lost more than 51 percent energy to technical inefficiency and energy theft than could be billed in the quarter.

The Report added, “Yola DisCo has consistently recorded the lowest billing efficiency since the fourth quarter of 2018.

“Concerned with the decline in DisCos’ billing performance, the Commission has commenced engagement with DisCos to investigate the factors responsible for the downward trend in billing efficiencies.

“Furthermore, the Commission is committed to working with DisCos to ensure that distribution losses are significantly reduced as part of the efforts towards steering the industry to financial sustainability.”