Energy expert, Iledare proffers solution to Nigeria’s frequent national grid collapse

Professor Emeritus of Petroleum Economics and energy expert, Wumi Iledare says serious infrastructure investment and decentralization of the electricity market are the solution to consistent national grid collapse in Nigeria.

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Prof. Iledare disclosed this to DAILY POST on Sunday in an interview.

His comments come as the National Grid on Friday, 23rd January 2026, experienced a disturbance that plunged Africa’s most populous nation into total darkness.

However, the grid was restored hours after it collapsed on Friday.

DAILY POST reports that within two years, the National Grid has collapsed at least 16 times, indicating a reoccurring challenge the country’s power sector faces.

Speaking on the grid disturbance in Nigeria, Prof. Iledare said the incident is a structural problem, not an operational accident.

“Nigeria’s recurring grid collapse is a structural problem, not an operational accident.

“The real solution starts with serious infrastructure investment, followed by power decentralization and electricity market restructuring. A decentralized market would support an optimal energy mix, reduce systemic risk, and ensure that only excess power flows through the national grid,” he told DAILY.

Band A Customers unlikely to get compensation – Iledare

Professor Iledare has expressed doubts that electricity consumers on Band A will receive any meaningful compensation following recent national grid collapses, describing the current tariff regime as flawed and poorly structured.

Iledare said the Band A pricing system lacks strong theoretical and regulatory foundations, noting that it was introduced largely as an ad hoc response to longstanding inefficiencies in Nigeria’s power sector.

According to him, charging consumers based on quality and hours of supply without transparent and verifiable measurement of actual service delivery undermines both fairness and credibility in the electricity market.

“On Band A pricing, the situation is unfortunate. The current band-based tariff has weak theoretical grounding and is largely an ad hoc response to sectoral inefficiencies,” he said.

Iledare added that under the existing framework, expectations of compensation for consumers affected by grid collapses are unrealistic. He explained that regulatory mechanisms are too weak to enforce effective service-level accountability on electricity distribution companies (DisCos).

“In practical terms, meaningful consumer compensation remains unlikely under the existing framework. For Band A customers, the most realistic option for redress may be a class action against the DisCos to enforce service-level accountability,” he stated.

The professor stressed that Nigeria’s power crisis cannot be solved through tariff adjustments alone, calling for deeper structural reforms in the sector.

“In summary, fix the structure, decentralize the market, invest in infrastructure, and restore regulatory discipline—pricing gimmicks alone will not solve Nigeria’s power problem,” Iledare concluded.