Nigeria Plunge to Darkness as National Grid Collapses 12th Time in 2024

NIGERIA- Nigerians were plunged into darkness on Wednesday as the national power infrastructure failed yet again for the 12th time in 2024.

The grid collapsed 11 times between January 2024 and November.

Within a week in October, the grid fell three times, resulting in outages, and prompting outrage from Nigerians.

A tweet from Nigeria's National system stated that the system crashed at approximately 2:09 p.m. on Wednesday.

The grid has already collapsed 12 times in a single year, a record.

"The major grid setback has occurred, and restoration will begin," the handler wrote.

The grid experienced its first collapse on Sunday, February 4, due to a claimed system failure by electricity distribution companies. The incident resulted in protracted outages throughout numerous regions, with distribution companies trying to restore power to the impacted districts.

Just two months later, on Thursday, March 28, the grid collapsed again. Another system breakdown was reported, resulting in prolonged outages in certain locations while others regained power within 24 hours. This second severe outage fueled calls for immediate improvements to the national grid management.

Monday, April 15, was the third grid failure of the year. The outage damaged industrial zones and major cities, and officials blamed the failure on frequency mismatches.

On Saturday, July 6, the grid collapsed again, causing the fourth disruption. The broad blackout caused disruptions in healthcare, industry, and other key industries. Authorities agreed to strengthen contingency plans to avoid a repeat.

The fifth failure occurred on Monday, August 5, putting the nation in darkness once more.

Monday, October 14, saw another complete grid failure, causing outrage among affected companies and residents. This signaled the start of an especially volatile month.

A partial collapse took place the next day, on Tuesday, October 15. Although less severe.

On Saturday, October 19, the grid experienced another perturbation but averted total failure. The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) stated that the incident was a preventative step to avoid an explosion at the Jebba transmission substation.

By October 22, 17 states in northern Nigeria were without electricity when the grid fell once more. TCN blamed vandals once more for the disruption, which resulted in the loss of power in 17 northern Nigerian states. TCN attributed the disruption to transmission line issues and vandalism.

On November 5, around 1:52 pm, there was a partial failure of the grid. According to TCN spokeswoman Ndidi Mbah, the outage was caused by system instability brought on by line and generator trippings.

Another fall happened just two days after the one on November 5. The country was once again in the dark after this second blackout in three days. Nigerians were reassured by TCN that repair work was in progress.

The twelfth failure of the year occurred today, December 11, compounding the problems of an already problematic electrical infrastructure.