Former Senator Ben Murray-Bruce has urged President Bola Tinubu to decentralise Nigeria’s electricity system, arguing that the country cannot solve its power crisis by relying almost entirely on the national grid.
Murray-Bruce made the call in an open letter to Tinubu in which he examined persistent problems in electricity generation, transmission, distribution, metering and financing.
He cited data from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), saying the gap between Nigeria’s installed generation capacity and the electricity actually available for dispatch remained enormous.
According to him, Nigeria had 13,625 megawatts of installed generation capacity in April, but only about 4,286MW was available for dispatch.
He also pointed to a sharp fall in grid generation on 22 August, saying output dropped to about 1,132MW in the evening from more than 4,000MW earlier in the day.
“These figures should make it clear that Nigeria’s electricity challenge is not simply about building more generating capacity.
“We need to examine the entire structure of the sector, including how power is generated, transmitted, distributed, metered and paid for,” he said.
The former senator also criticised the outcome of the 2013 electricity-sector privatisation, arguing that the reform failed to deliver the transformation Nigerians had expected.
“The 2013 privatisation was not the transformation Nigerians expected.
“In my view, it largely amounted to a transfer of custody without ensuring that the new owners had the financial strength and technical capacity required to make the system work at the scale Nigeria needs,” he said.
Murray-Bruce identified Nigeria’s metering deficit as another major problem, saying millions of active electricity customers remained without meters.
He argued that estimated billing makes it difficult for consumers to know how much electricity they are actually using and what they are paying for.
“A meter is a machine that tells the truth. An estimated bill is a machine that does not.
“If we want consumers to trust the electricity market, metering has to become a priority,” he said.
The former senator proposed a decentralised model in which estates, communities and other local areas could develop electricity systems suited to their needs, particularly through solar power, subject to proper regulation and financing.
“Every village, every estate and every community in Nigeria should have the opportunity to develop an electricity solution suited to its own circumstances,” he said.
According to him, greater community participation could attract fresh investment into the power sector while reducing pressure on the national grid.
Murray-Bruce also called on state governments to take greater responsibility for powering public facilities under their control, including streetlights, schools and primary healthcare centres.
He said the Federal Government should focus on federal infrastructure while states develop solutions for facilities within their jurisdictions.
The former senator noted that the Electricity Act 2023 had created greater opportunities for states to participate in electricity regulation and development.
He cited Aba as an example of how localised generation and distribution could complement the national electricity system.
Murray-Bruce urged the Federal Government to coordinate reforms that would promote decentralised power generation, attract private investment and strengthen accountability across the electricity value chain.
He expressed optimism that a combination of government reforms, private investment and community participation could improve electricity reliability and reduce the economic burden caused by persistent power shortages.
