Many traders in the Federal Capital Territory say their businesses are folding up following the ongoing power outage, describing the situation as frustrating and embarrassing for a national capital that should exemplify functional infrastructure. Some traders in Karu, ACO Estate, Deidei and Dutse who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria on Sunday reported that they depend entirely on power to run their businesses, and the prolonged blackouts have made operations unsustainable.
Mr Andrew Okorie, who runs a cold room in Karu, said he spends nearly N20,000 daily on diesel to preserve perishable items in his freezer. “I spend nearly N20,000 daily on diesel to run my cold room. It’s not funny at all and I am making little or no profit, especially with this unstable power supply,” he said. For a small business operating on thin margins, an additional daily expense of N20,000 for diesel quickly erodes any profit and may push the enterprise into losses. Okorie appealed to the Federal Government to do everything within its power to fix electricity to cushion the effect on consumers.
Mrs Agnes Odiase, who runs a restaurant in Karu, described the situation as “frustrating and chaotic” as her customers were not comfortable due to the incessant power outage. “I can’t boast of power supply for one hour at a stretch. It just comes and goes every one or two hours and this is affecting my business seriously,” she said. Restaurants require power for lighting, fans or air conditioning to keep customers comfortable, refrigeration to preserve ingredients, and cooking equipment in some cases. Unreliable power forces restaurateurs to invest in generators, increasing operating costs and reducing competitiveness.
From an economic perspective, the power outage affecting the FCT is not merely an inconvenience but a significant drag on economic activity. The FCT hosts thousands of small and medium enterprises that provide goods and services to residents and visitors. When these businesses cannot operate reliably, they reduce hours, lay off workers, or close entirely. The ripple effects extend to suppliers, landlords, and employees who depend on these businesses for their own livelihoods. The minister’s apology and promise of improvement within two weeks, while welcome, provides little comfort to traders who are losing money every day the outage continues.
A barber in ACO Estate on Airport Road, Mr Segun Ayomide, said he had to increase the price for his services from N500 to N1,000 for an ordinary haircut in order to meet up with his expenses on fuel. Ayomide said that in the past three days, power supply had not been stable in the estate and this was making him lose money. The price increase may reduce demand, as customers seek cheaper alternatives or postpone non essential grooming. For a service business that relies on foot traffic and repeat customers, price sensitivity can be high, and the barber may find that higher prices do not fully compensate for lost volume.
Mr Raymond Okon, a fashion designer in Dutse, said the power outage was affecting his business and he was unable to meet his customers’ demand. Okon said that for days, there might be no electricity in his area, adding that he needs it to do the job. “I am unable to meet up with my customers’ demand because of the power supply in my area and I am aware some electricity consumers are getting up to 18 hours supply, especially those on Band A. My appeal to government is to do everything possible to improve power supply in the country to reach every citizen and not favour some and abandon others,” he said. The disparity between Band A customers, who receive longer supply hours but pay higher tariffs, and other bands has created a perception of unequal treatment that fuels frustration.
Mrs Caroline Uneru, who sells cold drinks and water in Dei-Dei, said the electricity situation in her area was discouraging. Uneru said the little business she was using to feed her family had gone down due to poor power supply. “I am tired of the situation, the little business I am doing to feed my family is going down every day because there is no electricity to freeze my goods. In this heat period, nobody wants to buy hot drinks or water, so I am appealing to government to do everything it can to alleviate our suffering,” she said. For vendors of cold beverages, the inability to chill products during hot weather eliminates the value proposition entirely; customers will not pay for warm drinks when they can buy cold ones elsewhere or wait until they get home.
The Nigerian Independent System Operator has attributed the continued decline in electricity generation on the national grid to persistent gas supply constraints affecting several thermal power plants. This explanation, while technically accurate, does not address the immediate needs of traders who cannot wait for gas supply issues to be resolved. The gas constraints reflect deeper structural problems in the power sector, including payment defaults by distribution companies, maintenance backlogs at gas facilities, and infrastructure vulnerabilities that have not been adequately addressed.
The Minister of Power, Mr Adebayo Adelabu, had assured Nigerians that power supply would improve within two weeks and apologised for the current epileptic power situation. “With the committee we have set up, the feedback from gas suppliers, and the timeline for repairing the gas pipelines, I can say that within two weeks we should start seeing improvements in power,” he said. The two week timeline provides a target, but traders who have heard similar promises before may remain sceptical. The economic damage already incurred cannot be reversed, and for some businesses, two weeks of continued losses may be the difference between survival and closure.
The FCT power outage highlights the uneven distribution of electricity supply across Nigeria and the vulnerability of businesses that depend on reliable power. While the government pursues long term solutions including grid expansion, gas infrastructure investment, and tariff reforms, the immediate suffering of small businesses requires palliative measures. These could include targeted support for affected traders, accelerated repairs of damaged infrastructure, or temporary deployment of mobile generators to critical commercial areas. Without such interventions, the human and economic cost of the outage will continue to mount.
