The Federal Government and Lagos State Government have begun implementing a 24-hour electricity supply initiative for the Lagos corridor, as the state says it requires more than 6,000 megawatts of power to meet the needs of residents, businesses and industries.
Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, and Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu agreed on the implementation framework during a Ministerial Implementation Retreat on the Clean Lagos Electricity Market at Lagos House, Marina.
Lagos will serve as the pilot location for the 24/7 Energy Zones initiative approved by President Bola Tinubu, with the programme subsequently expected to extend to the Abuja-Kaduna-Kano and Enugu-Port Harcourt corridors.
Sanwo-Olu said Lagos requires more than 6,000MW of electricity and is seeking to build a more reliable and sustainable electricity market capable of moving the state towards round-the-clock power supply.
He said achieving the target would require increased investment in embedded and off-grid generation, stronger transmission and distribution infrastructure and a regulatory framework capable of supporting a functional state electricity market.
The governor said the Electricity Act 2023 and the Lagos Electricity Law 2024 had provided the legal basis for greater intervention in the sector, including efforts to address grid bottlenecks and improve gas supply to power plants.
Tegbe said the Federal Government was working with Lagos State and electricity sector operators to address longstanding constraints affecting supply to households, businesses and industries.
He said distribution companies serving the Lagos corridor had also committed to taking more electricity for delivery to customers, an important part of efforts to improve power availability across the state.
The intervention will focus on grid stabilisation, improved market liquidity, expansion of electricity infrastructure and greater regulatory and governance coordination between federal and state authorities.
To drive implementation, a Joint Technical Committee has been established to oversee the programme and report to a Steering Committee chaired by Sanwo-Olu and co-chaired by Tegbe.
Tegbe said the Lagos pilot was designed to demonstrate how coordinated action across generation, transmission, distribution and regulation could improve electricity reliability in major economic centres.
He said the wider 24/7 Energy Zones programme would subsequently be expanded to other major commercial and industrial corridors across the country.
Federal agencies involved in the initiative include the Transmission Company of Nigeria, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission and the Rural Electrification Agency, alongside other power sector stakeholders.
Sanwo-Olu said the success of the programme would ultimately be measured by whether residents and businesses experience more reliable electricity supply.
