Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has revealed that Nigeria’s electricity generation on the national grid fell in the third quarter of 2025 due largely to gas supply challenges and equipment faults.
Gatekeepers News reports that in its latest quarterly report released on Tuesday, NERC said power generation dropped by 7.15 percent in Q3 2025 when compared with the second quarter of the year.
The commission reported that average hourly generation stood at 4,179.15 megawatt-hour per hour during the period, producing a total of 9,227.57 gigawatt-hour of electricity.
The figure represents a decline of 602.74GWh from the 9,830.31GWh generated in Q2 2025. NERC noted that a large number of power plants recorded lower output within the quarter.
The commission said, “In total, twenty (20) plants recorded decreases in their average hourly generation across the quarters.”
“Significant decreases in average hourly generation were recorded in Ihovbor_2 (-79.97MWh/h), Geregu_1 (-47.85MWh/h), Geregu_2 (-47.61MWh/h), Egbin_1 (-43.45MWh/h), Kainji_1 (-42.17MWh/h) and Sapele_2 (-26.55MWh/h) power plants.”
However, NERC said some facilities recorded improved performance during the same period. The report stated, “Conversely, increases in average hourly generation were recorded in Okpai_1 (+58.82MWh/h), Jebba_1 (+27.88MWh/h), Omoku_1 (+15.35MWh/h), and Dadin-Kowa_1 (+14.88MWh/h) power plants across the quarters.”
On hydropower generation, the regulator said output declined slightly. NERC stated, “Cumulatively, the average hourly generation of the five grid-connected hydro power plants decreased by 3.23MWh/h/h (-0.24%) in 2025/Q3 compared to 2025/Q2.”
The commission attributed most of the drop to reduced generation at Kainji, alongside minor declines at Shiroro and Zungeru.
Thermal power plants were more heavily affected. According to the report, the cumulative average hourly generation from the grid-connected thermal plants also decreased by 318.68MWh/h (-10.14%) during the quarter, with seventeen (17) out of the twenty-three (23) thermal plants recording decreases in their average hourly generation.
NERC noted that gas supply constraints remain a major issue for Nigeria’s power sector, as most thermal plants rely on gas-fired systems.
It added that frequent mechanical outages and disruptions to gas infrastructure continue to limit available capacity on the grid, contributing to unstable electricity supply across the country.
