Business owners in Kogi, Niger and Nasarawa states have said that regular collapse of national grid amid high electricity tariff posed a threat their businesses.
Some of the traders expressed their frustration separately in interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday.
Alhaji Ibrahim Salihu, a bakery owner, said that the persistent collapse of the national grid amid huge electricity bill had disrupted the smooth operation of his bakery business.
“Most business owners now use generators as alternative sources of power, this is has certainly increased cost of production.
“It is also affecting local production and preventing our products from metying international standard.
“Businesses bear additional cost for fueling and maintenance of equipment due to erratic power supply,” he said.
Mrs Precious Oti, a hairstylist in Minna, who before relied on electricity for her business, said she had been forced buy a generator as alternative due to incessant grid collapse.
“I relied heavily on electricity for hair treatments, styling, makeup and other services.
“But regular power outage has forced me to seek alternative means which in turn has increased the cost of service provision.
“This has affected my business because the customers have drastically reduced,” she said.
Similarly, Dr Abdullahi Jabi, Chairman, Campaign for Democracy and Human Rights Advocacy Civil Society, said the persistent collapse of national grid was a great concern, with this year’s tally exceeding six incidents.
“The government must prioritise security around power generation stations, safeguarding personnel and ensuring their welfare to prevent internal sabotage,” he said.
He said that Nigeria’s energy crisis was multifaceted, necessitating comprehensive solutions.
Jabi advocated diversifying beyond hydroelectric power sources into solar, wind and coal offer promising alternatives.
According to him, investing in multi-functional power generation systems will empower economic activities.
Also speaking some business owners in Nasarawa State recounted how the recent national electricity grid collapse adversely impacted their businesses and called on government to prevent reoccurrence.
Mr Mudashir Yau, a shop owner in Keffi said he lost patronage running into thousands of Naira due to the incidents and blamed it on government lackadaisical attitude to the power sector.
“I lost a lot of patronage because I rely solely on electricity and the national grid kept collapsing, not once, not twice,
“I had no choice but borrow money to buy a generator so as to satisfy customers requesting for frozen items and cold drinks,” he said.
Mr Jonathan Wada, Manager of a Guest House in Keffi, also blamed the national collapse for a loss of profit as he was forced to resort to using generator to meet customers demand but at a huge cost.
“Of course in this business you must have an alternative power supply. But the collapse of the power grid meant we had to fuel our generators for a longer period of time.
“So during those episodes of power grid collapse we do not break even. It was not funny,” he said.
Mr Auwal Adamu, another Keffi resident said relying on generators to run his barbing saloon is not profitable hence the adverse impact on his business whenever the grid collapses.
“It is not easy. I have to rely on rechargeable or battery-powered clippers. That is what I now use to get through,” he said.
Residents of Kogi are also worried over the incessant collapse of the national grid and urged the Federal Government to take drastic action to save the situation.
They said not doing so would adversely affect the nation’s economy.
Mr Mike Atabo a satchet water producer said frequent grid collapse was frustrating his business, adding that the high cost of petrol had not helped matters.
Atabo said that his production capacity was dwindling resulting reduced income, which he said was a major threat to his business.
“The whole thing is negatively affecting the well-being of my family.
“I am appealing to the federal and state governments to rise to the challenge and look into the incessant collapse of the national grid and arrest it to save our businesses from collapsing.
“Government should look deeper in to the grid collapse so that saboteurs do not take advantage of the situation to pull down our economy the more,” he warned.
Mrs Mercy Bello, a bakery operator, wondered why up until now no solution had been found to the power crisis in the country.
Bello said that business owners in Kogi were not finding the situation funny, especially with the increases in fuel pump price.
“The truth is that most Nigerians are facing economic and they do not know how to overcome them. With constant power supply there might be some respite.
“But as it’s now, the energy challenge is going to cause more setbacks in the business space.
“There is no way businesses can thrive when there is no steady and affordable power supply’’, she said.
Mr Silas Maichibi, a retired civil servant, said he was worried by the crazy bills the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) gives customers.
Maichibi said: “The unfortunate thing about electricity is that it is one commodity that doesn’t have competitors.
“Supposing there are competitors many customers would have dumped AEDC’’, he said.
Mohammed Abdulmutalib, Commissioner for Rural and Energy Development, Kogi, said that the state government was yet to diversify by generating power to the mini grid to supply residents with electricity.
He said that the plans were underway for the state to have a mini grid to avoid depending on national grid for power supply.
Mr Olaseni Agunpopo, AEDC Chief Business Officer, Kogi Regional Office, blamed some of the causes of national grid oo high rate of energy thefts by customers.
Agunpopo said individuals and businesses illegally tap into the energy source by passing meters to avoid paying for the energy they consume.
“Energy theft is a serious issue that affects not only AEDC’s revenue but also the quality of service delivery to its customers and the safety of the people.
“The company has decided to take a strong stance against this menace.
“Our company will identify and address illegal connections. We will ensure that fair billing for all customers and reduce system losses.
“This move is part of the company’s strategic efforts to boost service delivery and customer satisfaction.
“We appeal to all our valued customers with outstanding bills to settle them promptly.’’, he told NAN. (NAN).
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