The national energy grid in Nigeria has crashed for the second time in a month, leaving areas of the country, including Abuja and Lagos, without power.
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Officially, the electricity went out overnight. It did not say when the 117 million-person grid will be operational again.
A “detailed investigation into the immediate and remote causes of the recurring grid failure is ongoing” was ongoing, the ministry stated.
In Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy, power outages are common, but total system failure is not.
It is believed that Nigeria has installed capacity of 12,500 megawatts, but on an average it produces only a quarter of that amount, making many Nigerians and businesses dependent on diesel-powered generators. Diesel prices have more than doubled since the start of the year.
Businesses cite the nation’s sluggish power grid and precarious energy supply as a key reason for the slow growth in Africa’s largest country.
AFRICA TODAY NEWS, NEW YORK