AEDC Defends Load-shedding in Niger, Nasarawa, Kogi and FCT

Laleye Dipo in Minna

The Abuja Electricity Development Company (AEDC) which is in charge of three states, Niger, Kogi Nasarawa and Abuja the Federal Capital Territory has defended the ongoing load shedding in the areas, blaming it on ‘recent drop in electricity generation’

The AEDC management said in a statement made available to newsmen in Minna yesterday that “the quantum of energy allocated to it from the national grid has fallen short of what it had been receiving some months ago”.

Consumers in the franchise areas had been facing epileptic supply of electricity resulting in the Niger state Government crying out that the organisation should explain the rationale behind the “sad development”.

Though the statement by the AEDC did not say what was responsible for the sudden drop in electricity supply to the states and the FCT from the national grid it was learnt that reduction in the volume of water in the three hydro-electric dams in Shiroro Kainji and Jebba had caused a drastic drop in the generation of the three dams because of the low level of impounded water just as the increase in the activities of the militants in the Niger Delta region of the country had compounded the situation.

The three Hydro-electric dams contribute at least 20 per cent of power to the national grid.
The AEDC categorically stated that it had not deliberately stopped supplying electricity to the people in the franchise areas adding that “when there is limited power available to us load shedding to customers has become inevitable”.

It explained that in the past when there was extra load in the system the organisation had always taken it “in order to ensure that we meet the demands of our customers” the situation now was quite different.