By CONSTANCE ATHEKAME

The Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) says there is a significant reduction in power generation currently affecting electricity supply across the country, particularly within the Lagos region.

The management of NISO said this in a statement in Abuja on Thursday.

It said that the Egbin Power Station, which is the largest electricity generating plant on the national grid and a major contributor to daily power supply in Nigeria, experienced a major operational disturbance.

The statement said that at about 8:21pm on April 28, the power station recorded a complete loss of generation, dropping from approximately 641 Megawatts (MW) to zero output.

”The incident was attributed to a failure of the plant’s central compressor, alongside a malfunction of the circulating water pump system, which necessitated an emergency shutdown of all units.

”In addition, power supply to the Lagos region is currently restricted due to the forced outage of the Osogbo–Ikeja West 330 Kilo Volt (kV) line, further constraining the delivery of available generation into the Lagos load centre.

”Consequently, this loss of generation has created a significant supply shortfall, necessitating immediate load shedding measures to maintain grid stability and prevent a wider system disturbance,” it said.

The statement said that the system operators had since activated contingency measures, adjusted load allocation across distribution companies with priority to critical infrastructure, and are optimising available generation from other power plants to mitigate the impact.

The system operator said that it acknowledges the inconvenience the situation had caused electricity consumers, especially within Lagos and surrounding areas.

”We assure the public that all relevant stakeholders are working closely to resolve the situation as soon as possible. (NAN)