Tegbe unveils roadmap to stabilise Nigeria’s power grid
The Minister of Power, Mr Joseph Tegbe, has outlined measures to stabilise Nigeria’s electricity grid, expand transmission capacity and attract fresh investments into the power sector.
Tegbe spoke at the opening of the Nigeria Energy Leadership Summit and Exhibition 2026 at the Landmark Centre, Lagos, with the theme, “Strengthening Power Delivery Through Execution, Coordination and Performance.”
He said the priority was to move from designing reforms to implementing measures that would deliver measurable improvements in electricity supply, system performance and market sustainability.
The minister identified four priorities: strengthening energy zones, improving sector liquidity and sustainability, optimising existing assets, and expanding infrastructure to meet future demand.
He said the framework was designed to address challenges across generation, transmission and distribution, ensuring that investments translated into more reliable electricity for households, businesses and industries.
Tegbe identified gas supply constraints, overstretched transmission infrastructure, distribution losses and accumulated sector liabilities as major challenges requiring coordinated action.
To improve electricity delivery and support industrial productivity, he outlined three priority economic energy corridors: Lagos–Ogun, Benin–Enugu–Port Harcourt, and Abuja–Kaduna–Kano.
He said the strategy would align power generation, transmission infrastructure, distribution readiness and identifiable demand to improve electricity supply to economic centres.
The minister also highlighted efforts to reduce technical and commercial losses through initiatives such as the Presidential Metering Initiative (PMI), the Distribution Sector Recovery Programme (DSRP) and the Meter Acquisition Fund (MAF).
On sector liabilities, Tegbe said the Federal Government had paid ₦1.23 trillion out of an estimated ₦3.3 trillion in legacy obligations, while taking steps to block financial leakages and prevent fresh liabilities from accumulating.
He stressed the need to optimise existing power-sector assets and expand infrastructure to accommodate future electricity demand.
According to him, the reforms, aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, must deliver tangible economic benefits through increased industrial productivity, business expansion, investment and job creation.
The three-day Nigeria Energy Leadership Summit and Exhibition 2026, which runs from Oct. 27 to Oct. 29, brings together energy companies, technology providers and industry stakeholders to showcase solutions and explore investment opportunities across the power and wider energy value chain.
