The Federal Government (FG) is in talks with the Export-Import Bank of China to secure a $2 billion loan for the construction of a new “super grid” aimed at addressing the nation’s persistent power shortages.
According to Bloomberg, the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, disclosed this on Monday during an economic summit in Abuja.
Adelabu said the initiative forms part of the Federal Government’s efforts to decentralise power generation and encourage large-scale industrial consumers, who previously left the national grid due to frequent failures, to reconnect.
The proposed transmission infrastructure, he noted, will connect the eastern and western regions of the country, where most of Nigeria’s industrial users are located.
“It’s part of plans to decentralise power generation in Nigeria and get the heavy commercial users that left the power grid because of its unreliability to return,” he said.
Nigeria’s power grid has suffered repeated collapses over the years, often blamed on poor generation capacity, transmission bottlenecks, and technical faults.
Adelabu said the planned super grid would enhance transmission efficiency and ensure a more reliable power supply to industrial zones.
He added that the Federal Executive Council has already approved financing for the project.
The minister further revealed that recent tariff adjustments for urban consumers have boosted industry revenues by 70 percent in 2024, with projections showing a further 41 percent rise to ₦2.4 trillion ($1.6 billion) in 2025.
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