National Grid Collapses.

 

The Nigerian National Grid confirmed a countrywide blackout on Friday, affecting electricity supply across most states.

 The grid operator said the blackout was caused by a disturbance in the national grid and assured that efforts to restore power were already underway.

By 1:20 pm on Friday, only the Ibadan Distribution Company was supplying electricity at a reduced capacity of 20 megawatts. 

The rest of the country’s distribution companies, including Abuja, Benin, Eko, Enugu, Ikeja, Jos, Kaduna, Kano, Port Harcourt, and Yola, recorded zero power supply.

This outage marks the first collapse of the national grid in 2026.

The blackout comes shortly after residents of Kano experienced electricity disruption earlier in the week.

 On Wednesday, January 21, electricity was cut off in Kano and neighboring areas due to a strike by workers of the Kano Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO). 

The strike, declared by the Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies and the National Union of Electricity Employees, followed the failure of the company’s management to meet worker demands after an ultimatum expired on Tuesday, January 20.

The strike led to a halt in many socio-economic activities across the state. Workers also picketed the KEDCO headquarters, blocking entrances and preventing official work from taking place.