Nigerians To Experience One Week Of Total Blackout

Nigerians will experience a week-long electricity rationing that will put the country into darkness for the period. This will be the longest period in recent years that the country would be faced with blackout. The development is coming few days after the Federal Government declared that its hand-over of the assets and
facilities of PHCN including generation and distribution plants to private firms was successful. The authorities had explained that the problem was due to the loss of 400 megawatts following repair works being carried out by the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), the major suppliers of gas to the power plants particularly Afam VI Power plant. The management of Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) in a statement in Abuja yesterday said there would be a reduction in generation output by 400mw, from today to Saturday, November 9, 2013. According to the statement, “this is due to the Shell Petroleum Development Company’s (SPDC) scheduled maintenance work on Okoloma gas plant supplying gas to Afam VI Power Plant, thereby leading to the shutdown of the power plant, resulting in nationwide power rationing.” It explained further that the shutdown of Afam VI power plant became necessary to allow SPDC inspect and carry out routine maintenance work on the Okoloma natural gas station in Afam, Rivers State, to ensure its technical integrity. “Maintenance work on Okoloma gas plant, SPDC revealed was important to guarantee continuous and uninterrupted supply of gas to Afam VI for power generation into the national grid.”