Christmas blackout looms as gas shortages cripple Nigeria’s power sector

Nigerians face the prospect of spending Christmas in darkness as widespread gas supply constraints continue to cripple electricity generation across the country. The disruption has forced distribution companies to implement load shedding, raising fears of prolonged outages during the festive season.

On Tuesday, the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) informed customers across the South-East that low system frequency, caused by gas shortages affecting generation companies, had forced the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) to shed available load. Subsidiaries including MainPower, TransPower, FirstPower, NewEra, and EastLand were all affected.

“The recent drop in power supply availability is due to low system frequency, occasioned by gas constraints affecting the generation companies. This has necessitated load shedding of available energy by the Transmission Company of Nigeria,” EEDC said in a statement signed by Emeka Ezeh, Group Head, Corporate Communications.

Similarly, the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHED) blamed the current load shedding across its franchise areas on inadequate generation and allocation from generation companies and the national control centre, urging customers for patience as teams worked to improve supply.

Generation companies confirmed that gas producers had begun cutting supplies due to unpaid debts. Joy Ogaji, CEO of the Association of Power Generation Companies, warned that the reduction in gas supply was directly affecting operations at thermal power plants.

This is reminiscent of the first quarter of 2024, when Nigerians endured months of blackouts after gas suppliers halted deliveries over unpaid debts. Although government intervention at the time restored supply, gas producers have continued to report receiving little or no payment for supplied gas.

To ease liquidity constraints, the Federal Government approved N185bn on December 4, 2025, for payment of outstanding debts to gas suppliers. The approval, announced by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, was granted by the National Economic Council chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima. However, the reason gas producers have still reduced supply remains unclear, and the Power Ministry has yet to comment.

Adding to the crisis, the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) reported that power generation on the national grid has been further reduced due to vandalism within the upstream gas pipeline network. The incident disrupted gas flow to multiple power plants, forcing them to operate below capacity and reducing national grid output.

“The incident affected gas availability to several power generation facilities. Consequently, several gas-fired power stations recorded low output, which resulted in reduced available generation capacity on the national grid,” NISO said, adding that emergency measures including hydroelectric dispatch, re-dispatch of generation, and voltage control interventions were activated to stabilise the system.

NISO also warned that the timing of the disruption is particularly concerning, as electricity demand typically spikes during the festive season, putting additional strain on the grid.

With gas supply shortages persisting, electricity generation struggling to recover, and peak holiday demand looming, experts have warned that Nigeria could experience significant power outages over Christmas unless the outstanding gas-to-power debts are urgently resolved and pipeline security is improved.