Last week Thursday’s one-day strike by members of the National Union of Energy Employees (NUEE) cost the country’s eleven electricity distribution firms (DisCos) around N2.5 billion in income.
When speaking on an Arise TV programme, Sunday Oduntan, executive director of Research and Advocacy at the Association of Nigerian Distribution Companies (ANED), made this assertion, he also voiced concern that the action would erode investors’ confidence and interest in the country’s power sector.
The strike was caused by the worker’s complaints of poor welfare and non-payment of arrears by the Federal government.
What you should know
During the one-day strike, the electricity workers shut down the national grid, throwing the country into darkness. According to data from the Federal Ministry of Electricity, the strike reduced Nigeria’s power generation from a peak of 4,829.5 megawatts to as low as 43MW.
According to the most recent national grid performance numbers obtained yesterday, the grid has now been stabilized, with peak electricity generation standing at 4,414MW. Oduntan stated that if the strike, which lasted less than a day, had lasted a week, it would have been capable of bringing the entire power sector value chain to a halt.