The Federal Government has attributed recent electricity supply disruptions in Lagos, Abuja, Ogun, Kwara and Oyo states to gas shortages, maintenance challenges and reduced output from hydroelectric power plants.

The Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, acknowledged the decline in electricity supply but assured consumers that efforts were underway to restore normal service.

In a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Adeola Adelabu, the minister said preliminary findings showed that the outages were not the result of any major or systemic failure of the national grid.

He explained that operational difficulties across the electricity value chain, insufficient gas supply to thermal power stations and reduced water inflows into hydroelectric reservoirs had affected power generation.

Tegbe said the Ministry of Power was collaborating with the Transmission Company of Nigeria, Nigerian Independent System Operator and electricity distribution companies to resolve the challenges, fast-track maintenance work and keep consumers updated.

Meanwhile, the Federal Government has facilitated the release of 44 containers of electricity equipment from the Apapa ports in Lagos, where more than 300 containers had reportedly been held, with some stranded since 2014.

The minister said the intervention followed a directive by President Bola Tinubu at the last Federal Executive Council meeting, mandating the Ministry of Power to work with the Nigeria Customs Service and the Nigerian Ports Authority to reconcile outstanding charges and secure the release of the equipment.

He added that technical experts would assess the recovered materials to establish their condition and suitability for deployment to ongoing electricity projects.