The Federal Government has approved the commencement of procurement for the proposed East and West Super Grids, targeting an increase in Nigeria’s electricity transmission capacity from about 5,000 megawatts (MW) to 19,000MW within two years.

The Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, disclosed this on Wednesday while briefing State House correspondents after the Federal Executive Council meeting chaired by President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

Tegbe said the projects were designed to strengthen the national electricity network, improve grid stability and enable more electricity to reach homes, businesses and industries across the country.

“The East and West Super Grids are not projects for one part of the country,” he said. “They cut across the north and south of Nigeria, strengthening the backbone that must carry power from where it is generated to where it is needed.”

According to the minister, Nigeria has more than 13,000MW of available electricity generation capacity, but its transmission infrastructure can reliably carry only about 5,000MW.

He explained that the proposed super grids would address the gap by expanding transmission capacity and reducing the amount of generated electricity that cannot be delivered to consumers.

“The target is simple,” Tegbe said. “We want a grid that can evacuate the power we already have, not one that leaves generation stranded while consumers remain in darkness.”

He added that the planned transmission corridors would improve connections from Sokoto through Abuja and other locations into parts of southern Nigeria.

Beyond the super grid initiative, the Federal Executive Council approved three immediate electricity infrastructure projects targeting Abuja and the Lagos axis.

The first involves the construction of a 33-kilovolt double-circuit underground and overhead line connected to the Katampe Transmission Substation.

The second project covers the design, manufacture and supply of three 300MVA, 330/132/33kV transformers for the Ikeja West Transmission Substation in Lagos.

The third involves the reconstruction and upgrading of the 35.6-kilometre Itumola–Mapasin–Shagamu 132kV single-circuit transmission line into a double-circuit line to accommodate increasing electricity demand along the Lagos–Shagamu corridor.

Tegbe said the projects might not attract as much public attention as major power generation initiatives but were essential to ensuring electricity reaches end users.

“These are not glamorous projects, but they are the projects that determine whether power actually gets to the consumer,” he said.

The minister explained that the high-capacity transformers would be manufactured abroad because Nigeria currently lacks the capacity to produce equipment of that specification.

“Some companies have started assembling transformers locally, but these large units require specialised manufacturing,” he said, adding that production could take between three and six months.

He noted that growing global demand for electricity equipment, partly driven by artificial intelligence and data centres, was placing additional pressure on supply.

Tegbe also disclosed that the Ministry of Power had begun a nationwide technical audit to identify ageing infrastructure and weak points in the electricity transmission system.

The exercise, which had been ongoing for four weeks, covers three major energy zones: Lagos and its industrial corridor, Abuja–Kaduna–Kano, and Enugu–Onitsha–Benin.

“We will no longer spend money on the wrong projects,” the minister said. “The audit will show us exactly where the system is failing and where investment will deliver measurable impact.”

He identified the Lagos–Ogun, Benin–Edo–Port Harcourt and Abuja–Kaduna–Kano corridors as priority areas, noting that the Lagos–Ogun axis accounts for about half of Nigeria’s national electricity demand.

On the financial challenges affecting the power sector, Tegbe said the Federal Government had paid ₦1.23 trillion out of the ₦3.3 trillion owed to gas suppliers and other stakeholders.

He said the outstanding liabilities had constrained gas supplies to electricity generation companies and weakened confidence across the sector.

“We have paid ₦1.23 trillion, and we intend to finish the job,” he said. “But we must also stop new debts from accumulating.”

According to the minister, the payments were made through bonds under the Presidential Power Sector Debt Reduction Programme, which is intended to improve liquidity for generation companies, support gas supply and restore investor confidence.

He added that the government was reviewing the electricity market structure to improve payment discipline and prevent fresh arrears from building up.

The minister further revealed that Tinubu had directed the Ministry of Power, the Nigerian Ports Authority and the Nigeria Customs Service to facilitate the clearance of more than 300 containers of electricity equipment stranded at Nigerian ports.

Some of the containers had reportedly remained uncleared for between 14 and 20 years.

“It is unacceptable that equipment meant to strengthen the grid has been sitting at the ports for years,” Tegbe said. “The President has directed that this must be resolved.”

He attributed the backlog to unresolved charges and incomplete clearance procedures under previous administrations.

Tegbe said technical experts would inspect the equipment after its release to determine which items remained serviceable and could be deployed, while obsolete materials would be disposed of appropriately.

The minister also announced that construction had commenced on a new National Control Centre in Osogbo to replace the existing facility, which he described as 64 years old.

“The new control centre will give us modern tools to monitor and manage the national grid,” he said.

He added that the government was working to bring completed transmission substations in Kano, Katsina, Bauchi, Gombe and other locations into operation.

As part of efforts to address electricity supply challenges, the ministry is also expanding solar mini-grid projects for institutions affected by limitations in the national transmission network.

Tegbe said 14 federal universities had received installed and energised mini-grids with capacities ranging from 1MW to 5MW, while another 11 institutions were receiving support through the Tertiary Education Trust Fund.

Five teaching hospitals were also benefiting from solar power installations being implemented in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health.

The minister maintained that the administration would continue to focus on grid stability, infrastructure rehabilitation, improved sector financing and renewable energy investment.

“Our goal is not just to announce projects,” Tegbe said. “It is to build a power system that Nigerians can depend on.”