By Ologeh Joseph Chibu
The Ekiti State Government has opposed the planned two-month power outage scheduled for July and August.
The Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) had previously announced the outage in a circular, informing customers in Ekiti and neighbouring Ondo State. However, the Ekiti government has deemed the plan an “unacceptable economic, financial, and social burden” for its citizens.
The government demanded an immediate suspension of the plan and called for an emergency meeting with stakeholders.
The meeting will hold on Tuesday, July 2, at the Ekiti State Government Secretariat.
The BEDC, through public notices on radio and social media, had detailed the planned outages for specific periods in July and August. The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) stated that the outages were necessary for critical maintenance on the 132 kV Akure-Osogbo transmission line.
In a letter dated June 30, Ekiti’s Commissioner for Public Utility, Mobolaji Aluko, addressed the MD/CEO of TCN, the MD/CEO of BEDC, and the Chairman of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Company (NERC). Aluko emphasized that no direct notification or communication had been made to the state government, nor was its approval sought. The letter was titled “Re: Notification of Power Disruption/Outage in Ado-Ekiti and Akure for two months (July, August 2024).”
Aluko reiterated that the planned outages, lasting nine hours each day from July 1 to August 31, 2024, would result in significant economic, financial, and social costs for Ekiti State residents. He stressed that the state government had not been informed or consulted about this disruption.
The letter read, “Our attention has been called to public notifications, both in print and in jingles in English and in Yoruba, of the intention of BEDC, under advice by TCN, to disrupt power supply to the transmission stations in Akure and Ado-Ekiti with the effect of adversely affecting Ekiti and Ondo State areas for nine hours each day (8am to 5pm) from July 1 to August 31, 2024.”
“No direct notification/communication was made to the Ekiti State Ministry of Infrastructure and Public Utilities (MIPU) on this matter, nor was approval sought and obtained from the Ekiti State Electricity Regulatory Bureau (EKSERB), saddled by law with the full authority to regulate the electricity industry in Ekiti State.”
“The planned disruption of electricity for three-eighths of each day for sixty-two days, amounting to five hundred and fifty-eight hours (558) total and twenty-three days of outage in these two months amounts to an unacceptable economic, financial, and social price to be paid by the citizens of Ekiti State, and we totally reject such a plan.”
The commissioner asked for an “immediate suspension of the plan and called for an emergency meeting with the regional heads of TCN, BEDC, and NERC.”
“The meeting is slated for Tuesday, July 2, in the commissioner’s office at the Government Secretariat, Ado-Ekiti.”
The commissioner called for the immediate suspension of the plan and requested an emergency meeting with regional heads of TCN, BEDC, and NERC to devise a less disruptive alternative. The meeting is set for Tuesday, July 2, at the commissioner’s office in Ado-Ekiti’s Government Secretariat.
The TCN announced plans to conduct critical maintenance on the 132KV Akure-Osogbo transmission line and install Optical Ground Wire (OPGW), among other activities. TCN’s notice also acknowledged the potential inconvenience to customers in the affected areas and sought their patience and understanding during the maintenance period.
Some electricity consumers in Ekiti State have expressed their dissatisfaction with the planned outages, describing them as unacceptable and a disincentive.
