The Nigerian Independent System Operator has attributed Friday’s national grid collapse to a widespread system disturbance involving the tripping of several high voltage transmission lines and the shutdown of some power generating units.
Data released by the operator showed that electricity supply to all 11 distribution companies fell to zero at about 1 pm, marking the first collapse of the national grid in 2026.
According to NISO, power generation had earlier dropped to zero megawatts around 12:40 pm, triggering a complete blackout across the interconnected electricity network.
In a statement on the incident, the operator explained that preliminary findings pointed to the simultaneous failure of multiple 330 kilovolt transmission lines, along with the disconnection of some grid connected generating stations.
It said the combination of these events destabilised the system and ultimately led to the collapse recorded on Friday afternoon.
NISO noted that restoration efforts began shortly after the outage, with recovery operations commencing at about 1:15 pm in line with established grid recovery procedures.
The operator disclosed that electricity supply had been restored to several locations, including Abuja, Lagos, Osogbo, Benin, Onitsha, Sakete, Jebba, Kainji and Shiroro, while work continues in other parts of the country.
It added that investigations into the precise causes of the disturbance were ongoing, assuring Nigerians that full restoration and stabilisation of the grid remain a top priority.