Nigerians can expect gradual improvement in electricity supply in the coming weeks as maintenance work on a major gas pipeline nears completion, the Chief Technical Adviser to the Minister of Power, Adebayo Olowoniyi, has said.
Olowoniyi made the comments on Thursday during an appearance on Arise TV, shortly after the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, issued a public apology over persistent power outages that have disrupted homes, businesses, schools, and industries.
He defended the minister’s apology, describing it as a demonstration of leadership rather than an admission of personal fault. “Not necessarily directly his fault for the challenges we have, but as the Minister of Power, he took the right leadership step to take ownership and prefer a solution,” Olowoniyi said.
The adviser explained that the crisis was largely caused by disruptions to a key gas pipeline, noting that about 75 per cent of Nigeria’s electricity generation depends on gas.
“One of the major gas pipelines in Nigeria was undergoing maintenance, and that process is gradually being completed. We’re confident that within the next two weeks, full gas pressure will be restored, allowing power plants to return to their previous generation levels,” he said.
Olowoniyi added that improvements had already begun, and power supply would continue to recover steadily over the coming weeks. “From yesterday, we have already started to see gradual improvement as the pressure on the pipeline builds up,” he noted.
Adelabu, speaking in Abuja earlier this week, said the outages were due to factors beyond the government’s immediate control but set a two-week timeline for recovery. “With the committee we have set up, commitments from gas suppliers, and the repair timeline, two weeks from now, we should start seeing improvements in supply,” he said.
The minister also reaffirmed the Federal Government’s goal of raising electricity generation to 6,000 megawatts by the end of 2026, describing the current disruption as a temporary setback.
Nigeria’s power sector continues to face challenges including inadequate gas supply, ageing infrastructure, transmission bottlenecks, and persistent liquidity issues across the electricity value chain.
Authorities say the ongoing pipeline repairs and coordinated efforts with gas suppliers are critical to restoring stable electricity supply nationwide.
