‘Don’t just go there,’ one Nigerian cautioned the other who had started to talk about the situation in the country. They had sat down to have a drink at a bar, having not seen each other for sometime. ‘If you don’t mind, I’d rather enjoy my drink,’ he continued to say, ‘by the way, how’s your family?’ ‘Very well, thank you… How’s yours?’ In the meantime, they were being served what they requested for, but before any further dialogue the lounge was plunged into pitch darkness, yet again. Nobody in the bar said anything as their hearts sank. The whole atmosphere was close to absolute quiet. Within a second or probably more, they heard the familiar sound of a standby generator start up in the distance. Moments later, they were all bathed in full brighter lights. Everybody in the lounge heaved a sigh of relief.

Somebody nearby remarked, ‘Let there be light …ever since there has been light.’ God also separated the day, with light, from the night, without. Mankind in its own limited knowledge, nonetheless, has managed to light up the night with electricity. The generation, transmission and management of electricity are, therefore, somewhat that of mankind. The perennial blackouts and brownouts in Nigeria would have to be solved by the people and their government. Nigeria no doubt is a prayerful nation; but heaven only helps those who help themselves. For years, the country continues to be denied a steady supply of electric power and it has become the most important issue. Promises upon promises on this essential energy have never been fulfilled.

I remember - in my physics class so many years ago, we wound a coil of copper wire around a soft-iron core (armature) and then moved the armature through a magnetic field – bingo, there was electricity. With that experiment, we successfully replicated the principle of electromagnetic induction discovered by the British scientist and inventor Michael Faraday in 1831. It is hard to believe that Nigeria , a country with a population of over 140 million people and millions of top class engineers, still cannot constantly sustain the reproduction of that simple experiment. More so when God, in His mercies, has endowed the country with abundant natural resources that could be used, constantly, to move an armature through a dedicated magnetic field to produce electricity.

Electricity is the bedrock of modern living and there is not much anybody can do about that. No development takes place in modern times without electrical power because of the ease of converting electrical energy into other forms of energy. For example, a touch on a switch instantly produces light from an electric light bulb. In almost all societies around the world, electricity is taken for granted. People hardly remember the word “electricity” until the electricity bill arrives. My description above, somewhat simplified the production of electricity, but in a general sense it is as simple as that. There are, however, two types of electrical current that we commonly come across everyday and use – the direct current and the alternating current.

The direct current, commonly, is used to power electronic components in appliances, such as television, radio, computer; etc., but it cannot be transmitted over a long distance as it attenuates with distance. That is a disadvantage. It can, however, be converted from the alternating current through a rectifier, a dynamotor or other various means. The alternating current, on the other hand, is what the electric utility company supplies to the homes, offices, schools and the factories. Electrical energy, however, has a drawback - it cannot be economically stored. To produce electricity, other storable forms of energy would have to be converted into mechanical energy (energy of movement) to move the armature in the magnetic field. The generator that produces the alternating current is commonly known as the alternator.

When dams are built, it is to accumulated water in order to build up potential energy. When the water is let go in a controlled flow through a turbine, it turns the turbine, which in turn turns the armature in a magnetic field (alternator) and electricity is produced. The same thing is achieved in a gas turbine; only this time the chemical energy in the fossil fuel of gas, petrol or diesel is converted into mechanical energy in the gas turbine or piston engine to rotate the alternator. It is also interesting to know that the much talked about nuclear reactor is, basically, only a kettle. The breakdown of fissionable radioactive materials such as uranium produces great heat; which is then used to boil water to produce high powered steam. The steam energy produced is subsequently used to drive a steam turbine that drives the alternator.

Why is it necessary to explain all these technically? Well, I suppose that the average Nigerian is already privately involved in the production and management of electricity than people of other nations. He might as well know more. Besides, the Nigerian generates, privately, his own electricity everyday. Nigeria is the world leader in the use of standby generators. I have, with my layman knowledge, described the two aspects of the production of electricity - the alternator that generates the electricity and the means to drive the alternator. Which of these two is Nigeria ’s main problem is unclear. What is, however, clear is the pain everybody that lives in Nigeria experiences on accounts of blackouts and brownouts. Additionally, could there be a third factor - the mismanagement of the insufficient electricity that is being produced?

Unfortunately, once electrical energy is produced and it is not used instantly, it is gone forever in that form. The generator, however, could be used as a pump during off-peak periods, for instance, to pump water into a reservoir. This accumulated stored energy could then be used later to drive an alternator during peak periods. To manage a precious energy that you cannot store, therefore, calls for more than average intelligence. Considering our pedigree in management of things that are storable, the management of a transient energy like electricity would appear more than a rocket science to us. It is easier to guesstimate, than all the trillion invested so far, the degree of the difficulties people that live in Nigeria experience because of frequent power outages.

In my estimation, a high percentage of the amount (a trillion naira) spent was perhaps not misappropriated as many may think, but was probably allowed to waste. This could be because we are not utilising the principle of electricity management. There is no reason why during off-peaks, for instance, water cannot be pumped back upstream at our dams sites to fortify the potential energy that could be converted later into mechanical energy during peak periods. If we are already doing this, then we need to intensify the process. We also need, for instance, to separate industrial estates from residential areas. One way of managing electricity could be to reduce the residential nominal voltage to 110 volts while industries that require higher voltage, because of heavy electric motors, could remain at 230 volts or higher. Brazil and North America have this system.

I do not think that the statistical data of electrical power utilisation in Nigeria has ever been used in the management of our electricity. Do those concerned ever determine when is peak demand and when is off-peak? The engineers need to know when to up production for high demand and when to reduce or divert the amount of power produced during off-peak. Do we still leave everything as usual to chance? God cares about us, but I suppose He would want us to manage our electricity in Nigeria by ourselves. Like every aspect of our lives in Nigeria , the management of electricity could easily have been left to the mediocre. These could be people who do not know how electricity works, let alone how to manage it.

From what I have been hearing, we are focussing to generate enough electric power and hoping that the problem would be solved. Maybe that would be true on the first day of commissioning an additional power generator, but it would need management to sustain steady power supply thereafter. This could also be an indictment on our universities, technical institutions and engineers. It is their responsibilities to collate data and find solution to a problem that is so native and as big as this. I am not an engineer, but I know from my school days that the converse of electromagnetic induction (generation) is the principle of electromagnetic reaction which was first observed by the French physicist Andre Marie Ampere in 1820.

Nothing upsets the steady flow of electricity more than electromagnetic reaction – a complete opposite so to speak. A simple and common example of the principle of an electromagnetic reaction is the electric motor – the machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Electric motor, meanwhile, is the core of modern industrialisation. It is the most important component in any industry and has also found its uses in our homes. Unfortunately, an electric motor requires 6 times its rated power in order to start. The required energy to keep it running, however, goes back to its nominal wattage after starting. For example, a 1000 watts rated motor would need 6000 watts or 6 KVA to start but only needs I KVA to continue to run. That is an upset in a steady flow.  

Industrial productions are ninety percent run by electric motors. Do not forget that air-conditioners’ compressors in our homes and offices are also electric motors. One can imagine what could happen if coincidentally all these electric motors, including compressors, within a city were made to start at the same time without provisions for the surge that occur during start-ups. The city’s electrical system would most likely crash. I suspect this is what has been happening to us. Because of our harsh weather that demands the widespread use of air conditioners and the prosperity to afford them, we are subjected to incessant power outages. This is in addition to the uncoordinated positioning of factories and industries in residential areas,

In Europe for instance, just because of their industrialisation alone which in any case is isolated from residential areas, they produce two times the electrical power they need at any given time to allow for start-ups of electric motors that run through their factory shifts. The rest is left to waste as you cannot store electrical energy economically. Mind you, there are capacitors that could store a minimal amount of electricity. These are primarily used to ease the start-ups of some electric motors. Now that global warming is necessitating the use of air conditioners in Europe also, Europe would be forced to produce at least two and a half times more than is nominally required at any time to allow for regular start-ups of compressors in the air conditioning systems.

In the Middle East where life in the desert is very harsh, electricity generation is taken seriously. Everywhere is air conditioned and even lately bus stops are being air conditioned. How have they achieved constant power supply with no outage? There is no brownout not to talk of blackout. The power never blinks. They produce, at any given time, four times of their needed power and allow the rest to waste. To minimise the waste, however, the citizens are encouraged to leave their air conditioners on; for as long as possible. The people may as well utilise it. The U.A.E. with a population, including tourists, of less than 20 million people produced over 16.8 megawatts of electricity in 2005. This allowed for the uncanny characteristics of air conditioning compressors and for their rapid industrialisation.

As I supposed earlier, it is not what is produced that matters so much, but how what is produced is managed. Except I have missed something all these years, I have never heard or seen a campaign by the former NEPA or the government, for that matter, to appeal to Nigerians to conserve power in order to allow more people to enjoy at least the little that are being produced. Before Ghana celebrated one year of no power outage in the 90s, the government of Jerry Rawlings first went on a campaign drive to implore the people of Ghana to limit the use of air conditioners so that the little that was being produced could at least go round. A sacrifice the people of Ghana are still proud of till today.

Japan , the second largest economy, had 13 of its 17 nuclear reactors shut down for safety inspections for most of the year 2005. The Japanese authority appealed to its people to limit the use of air conditioners in particular and generally conserve electricity. The people heeded. Last summer in London , there were power rationing in some parts of the city for a week. The reason was that for the first time in their history, there was unanticipated widespread use of air conditioners in offices and homes to combat the unprecedented hot summer. The system broke down, but the utility companies appealed to the people to limit the use of air conditioners. Londoners also co-operated and everybody had steady supply afterwards.

Our style of management is not only selfish but also wicked. Because most of our leaders have standby generators which they can afford to run, ordinary people can go to hell – it seems. One possible way out of this is for a push in legislation that prohibits the use of standby generators in the offices and homes of key government officials and power utility workers. Everybody could make sure it is enforced. We could start with Aso Rock and the National Assembly and let us not be intimidated by their argument of insecurity. We will surround each location with a battalion of security personnel to guard them, but let there not be a standby generator for them. What is good for the goose should also be good for the gander. Let them enjoy the beautiful natural breeze on the balconies or under the shades for a change. If in three months we still cannot get a steady power supply in Nigeria in spite of this, then they can have their standby generators back.

In the interim, could I - if I may - suggest that all major industrial factories be taken out of the national grid? This, I suppose, would allow individuals to satisfactorily make use of the limited electricity available. Most industries in Nigeria already have standby power in any case. The running and maintenance of their power generators could be offset by the Federal Government through tax breaks for as long as it is necessary to use private generators. The onus would then be on the government to provide these industries with electricity in order to regain the taxation they would otherwise have lost. The country, of course, will make money from the sale electricity to industries when we eventually generate enough power.

As it is, nobody is happy – neither the industries nor the people. There is nobody in Nigeria , from the very rich to the poorest, who does not feel the impact of sudden power outage. It would not take long before these frequent heart-cuts that people experience each time there is power outage start manifesting on our life expectancy. The other day, my standby generator suddenly broke down because of long overuse. Meanwhile, ninety nine percent of people in other lands have never seen a generator, let alone own one. At about the same time, the transformer in my area got blown up. My first reaction was to blame the President. Later that day I saw Obasanjo on television complaining, at a political rally for Yar’adua that he is often the only speaker, about sabotage in the electricity system that he had generously funded.

I felt sorry for Nigeria , but my sympathy was not for the allegation of possible sabotage. It was for the trillion-naira-confirmation that the President is already a lame duck President. If a leader cannot carry his people along, he cannot achieve anything no matter the amount of money committed to any project. The conversation in the lounge continued. ‘Obasanjo’s total disregard of many citizens’ perception of him as an unfair leader, naturally, has reduced the number of sympathisers to his cause,’ the Nigerian that did not want to be bothered about Nigeria finally admitted. And, it sure did to undermine Obasanjo’s reforms. The other man agreed and said, ‘Each time, for instance, that he told people to shut up or when he called them idiots, he dropped a number of followers or sympathisers.’

For this not-so-good image, a trillion naira project that should have bore fruit probably did not. I am certain with politics aside; Obasanjo is big enough to admit this. The effectiveness of a leader is the numbers behind him or her. Nobody follows anybody who he or she perceives as an unfair person. Obasanjo may not agree with this line of thinking presently, but in retirement when all the sycophants around him would have moved on, he might be able to reflect on his actions. He chose to lead that way, but every choice we make has its consequences.

‘I wish an NGO could organise a drive to sensitise the public, since the government is inert, about the common good that could be derived if we manage our electricity sensibly,’ one of them said. ‘Now you are talking,’ the first guy continued, ‘…Even if it means limiting each household’s number of air conditioning presently, I believe majority of the people would comply.’ …People need effective leadership that can galvanise them to do what is sensible. Many people think Nigerians would not listen but that may not be true. ‘Yes, they may not listen to you, but would most likely listen to an effective leader,’ the same gentleman concluded. Mankind will naturally partake of a project it suspects would benefit it. That is human nature. There was a flicker, one more time. That, however, was the changeover from the standby generator to the public utility or NEPA or whatever it is called these days.

If people will not readily comply to limit the use of air conditioners, technology is available currently to limit the amount of electricity a location can draw from the general utility, if it comes to that. With such system in place, when such individually allotted limit of power is exceeded, the power is disconnected automatically from that location alone, and would need to be reset by the utility company. My drift is that those who comply would be able to continue to enjoy uninterrupted power supply, whilst the offender is temporarily discomforted without dragging everybody down with him.

I do believe we generate enough electricity to light up all the light bulbs in Nigeria . With that alone, there will be no blackouts. If we then extend it to the powering of televisions; radios; refrigerators, not industrial refrigerators; alone, we could have some brownouts here and there but still there will be no blackouts. To manage the little we have seems to me to be the right thing to do. Particularly, when nobody or organisation is completely satisfied. Besides, widespread use of privately generated necessaryelectricity as a stop gap for the infrequent public supply of electricity is an anathema in modern society – it is a reversion to the Stone Age. As we have experienced so far in this country, easier living such as could be provided by steady supply of electricity is either for all or nobody at all.

Samuel Akinyele Caulcrick

Lagos .

Robot  # 1 | 03.04.2007 08:22

‘Don’t just go there,’ one Nigerian cautioned the other who had started to talk ab...Read the full article.

Shoko Loko Bangoshe  # 2 | 03.04.2007 15:32

Samuel, Thanks for an absolutely brilliant article. Are you sure you're just a layman? You are right that currently, the amount of electricity produced is simply NOT ENOUGH to satisfy all Nigerians - and for the foreseeable future, it won't be enough until enough power stations are built to satisfy this capacity. As I hinted in this article I published a ..., Nigeria might well have to increase its capacity tenfold to come close to the level of electricity supply enjoyed in South Africa. So it means that the scarce electricity has to be rationed somehow. There are two options here: you can ask people to reduce their consumption (as you have suggested), but the problem is human beings are basically selfish and will pursue their agenda unless it is obvious that doing so will affect them or their loved ones. So I don't think this will work. The other option is to have a metering scheme where the first X units of electricity are charged at say 10 naira per unit. Beyond this, the price can be increased to say 50 naira per unit. Then people will be able to use as much as they like, but they probably won't if they realise there is a heavy penalty for doing so.

Peaches  # 3 | 04.04.2007 09:18

Great article! it definately hit home. This issue of light in Nigeria just needs to be solved and like u suggested all hands really need to be on deck and sacrifices just have to be made from all quarters. All we ever hear from the govt is how much they are spending yet we never get results, it just seems like this light problem has been going on forever and no one can solve it (just like most of the other issues we have in this country) if Ghana can do it, why cant we? Imagine a Nigeria with constant electricity :icon_ques Now there's a thot! Even Abuja the so called seat of power is being badly hit, when asked the power holding company (PHCN) which is the new name for NEPA will give u all sorts of stories including blaming it on the Niger Delta boys for blowing up some power station or something. Some genius in the govt obviously thot that changing the name of the company would inevitably solve all of Nepa's issues, and trust PHCN to really live up to it's new name by actually withholding the power for as long as they can. What really amuses me is that they never fail to bring u a bill at the end of the month that never reduces even with all the power failure, u just wonder how ur bill is always constant or rising while ur power consumption decreases all the time due to incessant power failure. This is very frustrating and shows that all the money they are getting is obviously going into unknown pockets. Well to borrow abit from Martin Luther King I guess i can say that "I HAVE A DREAM THAT ONE DAY NIGERIANS WILL ENJOY UNINTERRUPTED POWER SUPPLY"! Peaches.

tomr  # 4 | 09.04.2007 01:34

As others have mentioned, a great and insightful article, and food for thought. Unfortunately, things are going to get worse (global warming and the ensuing problems are round the corner, much closer than people realise). We will get to a stage when the management option will be forced on us. Storage may be impossible for now, but we can plan for the future, by separating industry and domestic needs. Whether we will do so in time is - well - the point.