Presidency blames sabotage for worsening electricity supply across Nigeria

  Mr. Okupe also said the power supply will improve in six weeks time.

The Special Adviser to the President on Public Affairs, Doyin Okupe, on Tuesday attributed the drop in the nation's power supply to massive sabotage of the nation's gas pipelines across the country.

He said this led to loss of about 4,000mw and the attendant drop in power supply currently felt by Nigerians.

Mr. Okupe told journalists in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, that the present administration has increased power generation capacity from 2,800 mw to 7,500 mw.

Mr. Okupe said the nation was generating about 3,000 mw, the lowest since 2011 due to the gas supply constraints to the power plants.

He stressed that vandals were bent on sabotaging the transformation of the power sector.

He said President Jonathan is concerned about the power shortage and had released funds to fix the vandalised pipelines and assured that the situation will improve in the next six weeks.

He said Mr. Jonathan's administration has completed 10 Independent Power Projects it inherited, as well as provided additional 4,000 kilometres of gas pipelines to feed the power plants.

The special adviser said the Federal Government remains committed to improving power supply and has ordered the military to treat pipeline vandalism as a national security challenge.

He assured that Nigerians would enjoy16 to 18 hours of uninterrupted power supply when the repairs of the pipelines were completed and the newly inaugurated power plants resumed generation.

Mr. Okupe assured that the government will effectively address the challenges of oil theft and pipeline vandalism with the $1 billion fund recently approved by the presidency and the establishment of a technical committee on oil theft.

(NAN)