Power Crisis Deepens as Adebayo Adelabu Fails to Meet 6,000MW Goal After Multiple Deadlines
Story: written by Joseph April 10,2026
Nigeria’s electricity challenges persist as the Federal Government continues to fall short of its 6,000 megawatts generation target, despite repeated assurances from the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu.
Upon assuming office in August 2023, Adelabu pledged that power generation would hit 6,000MW before the end of that year, raising hopes of improved electricity supply nationwide. However, current output stands at about 3,331MW, according to the Nigerian Independent System Operator—far below what is required to meet the needs of over 200 million citizens.
The ongoing shortfall has left households battling intense heat while businesses suffer heavy financial losses. The World Bank estimates that unreliable electricity costs Nigeria roughly $29 billion annually, equivalent to about 10% of the country’s GDP.
During a Senate oversight visit led by Eyinnaya Abaribe, the minister reiterated plans to achieve the 6,000MW target by December 2024. That milestone was missed, with peak generation reaching only 5,229MW, while the highest ever recorded stood at 5,801.6MW—still below the promised benchmark.
The ministry later attributed the setback to vandalism of key transmission infrastructure, which disrupted progress toward increased output.
The target was subsequently shifted to 2025, when Nigeria briefly recorded a peak generation of 6,003MW in March—the highest in its history. However, the achievement proved unsustainable, as supply quickly declined below 5,500MW.
Recent figures indicate that generation has hovered around 5,000MW, with further drops to between 2,000MW and 3,900MW due to gas supply constraints, according to system operators and distribution companies.
As the latest deadline passes, electricity delivered to distribution firms has fallen again to around 3,331MW, prolonging outages across the country.
Power distribution companies have continued to issue apologies to customers, promising improvements that have yet to materialise, leaving millions of Nigerians still in darkness.
