The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Niger Delta Power Holding Company, Jennifer Adighije, has urged the Federal Government to remove electricity subsidies for all customers and implement fully cost-reflective tariffs to restore financial stability in Nigeria’s power sector.
Adighije made the call in a statement made available to our correspondent in Lagos.
The MD, while highlighting deep-rooted structural and liquidity challenges constraining the performance of the electricity market, advocated the decoupling of government subsidies from electricity tariffs and the gradual implementation of fully cost-reflective tariffs across all customer segments.
According to her, establishing a financially viable electricity market is essential for restoring investor confidence, attracting private sector participation and ensuring sustainable sector growth.
The NDPHC boss lamented that liquidity constraints remain a major concern in the sector, revealing that only about 30 per cent of market invoices are currently settled, thereby creating financial strain across the electricity value chain.
She also identified gas supply shortages as a persistent challenge affecting thermal generation plants, explaining that gas procurement alone accounts for nearly 60 per cent of operational costs for power generation companies.
“In addition, liquidity constraints within the electricity market remain a major concern, as only about 30 per cent of sector invoices are currently settled, creating financial strain across the value chain. To address these systemic issues, there should be the decoupling of government subsidies from electricity tariffs and the gradual implementation of fully cost-reflective tariffs across all customer segments.
“Establishing a financially viable electricity market is essential for restoring investor confidence, attracting private sector participation, and ensuring sustainable sector growth,” she was quoted as saying.
Adighije further pointed to the mismatch between installed generation capacity and the transmission network’s ability to efficiently evacuate power to distribution companies and end-users as a major limitation.
Providing an update on the company’s operations, she stated that the NDPHC has constructed ten power plants across ten states under the National Integrated Power Project, with eight already commissioned and six currently in commercial operation.
She added that the company’s installed generation capacity stands at approximately 4,000 megawatts, representing nearly 30 per cent of Nigeria’s total grid-connected capacity.
Within the past year, she said, the company recovered about 900 megawatts of previously dormant generation capacity through optimisation of plant performance, enhanced operational discipline and deployment of predictive maintenance strategies.
“These improvements demonstrate NDPHC’s commitment to maximising existing assets before embarking on new-generation projects,” she noted.
Adighije disclosed that the company recently recovered 110 abandoned containers and 216 packages of critical power equipment worth millions of dollars from Nigerian ports after prolonged delays.
The recovered equipment, she noted, would be deployed to complete ongoing generation, transmission and distribution projects across the country, accelerating infrastructure delivery timelines.
Beyond tariff reforms, the NDPHC boss said the company is strategically diversifying into renewable energy development and direct electricity supply to industrial clusters as part of a broader plan to enhance power reliability and support economic growth.
According to her, the company is gradually transitioning towards cleaner energy sources, including solar and small hydro projects, to complement its gas-fired generation assets developed under the NIPP framework.
She revealed that NDPHC is developing a solar power concept targeted at industrial clusters in Kano State, which is expected to serve as a pilot for similar interventions across other industrial hubs nationwide.
Under its ‘Light Up Nigeria’ initiative, she added that the company aims to deliver reliable and affordable electricity to industrial and commercial clusters, markets, universities and residential communities through embedded and independent power solutions.
Adighije stressed that consistent implementation of government policies, particularly the provisions of the Electricity Act 2023, remains critical to unlocking investments, strengthening infrastructure and stimulating electricity demand across Nigeria’s expanding economy.
The NDPHC boss reiterated the company’s commitment to supporting national development through reliable power supply, expressing optimism that ongoing reforms and targeted investments would significantly improve electricity reliability in the coming years.
