Nigeria power system collapse highlights negatives – and positives – facing industry

A variety of reasons were given for the complete loss of power to the grid of Africa’s biggest economy on 31 March. The most immediate cause appears to have been the tripping of the 330kV transmission lines from Osogbo to Ihovbor and Ihovbor to Benin, resulting in the loss of 201MW from the Ihovbor gas power plant in Delta State. Without adequate reserves to support the system, the resulting drop in frequency caused a complete collapse. Generation had already fallen precipitously from a record high of 5,074MW on 2 February in the wake of a sophisticated underwater attack on the pipeline feeding the Forcados export terminal operated by Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited.