KEY POINTS

• Frequent power outages have disrupted business operations across Northern Nigeria, impacting productivity and revenue.
• Businesses face rising costs due to reliance on diesel generators and fuel shortages.
• The outages underscore broader infrastructure challenges in Nigeria’s power sector, calling for urgent reform.

Northern Nigeria businesses are facing severe disruption problems as power outages have become more frequent. The outages are affecting the companies by making them to use costly sources of power such as diesel generators in order to conduct their operations. The use of generators together with the current fuel scarcity has become a major challenge to many small businesses and this has raised questions on the economic effects on the region.

Economic consequences of power interruptions: a review

These outages have impacted a number of sectors including manufacturing and retail in the important Northern Nigerian states. Some companies have cited a dramatic drop in efficiency as constant power shortages have caused disruptions and forced them to rely on generators. These outages are affecting small business owners most especially because they are financially challenged.

In a BusinessDay report published recently, long power outages have affected many small businesses, which have been compelled to shorten their working hours, thus affecting their revenues and the extent to which they can meet the needs of their clients.

These challenges have been aggravated by increasing fuel costs and diesel unavailability, which makes it expensive for companies to run even with generators.

With the demand for diesel on the rise, fuel prices have gone up and this has raised operational costs for companies that are operating under very hard economic times.

Infrastructure issues in the power sector

The Nigerian power sector has over the years been faced with problems that include poor infrastructure, low power generation capacity and reliance on old structures.

Nigeria, the largest economy in Africa, produces less than 5,000 MW of electricity which is inadequate for its increasing population. Northern Nigeria is most affected due to few power stations and high transmission losses due to old age infrastructure.

Attempts to liberalize the sector for instance through the privatization of power generation and distribution have not been very fruitful. Most industry experts have opined that the sector requires extensive reforms such as funding in renewable energy to solve the problems that have led to constant power blackouts.

Appeals for interference and policy change

The business people and economists have urged the government to intervene and address the issue of power supply in Northern Nigeria. Suggestions made include increasing the pace of investment in renewable energy projects, improving the capacity of the grid and policies that may lead to the involvement of the private sector in the energy sector.

If these challenges are to be met, the government can enhance the business environment in the entire region and foster economic development.

The current power problem in Northern Nigeria is a clear indication that there is need to look for lasting solutions that are not short term solutions. Ad hoc reforms remain very relevant in light of the firm-specific analyses showing that the negative effects of high cost power generation and fuel volatility, hinder business operations and Nigeria’s development goals