Residents of Lagos State spend an estimated N14 trillion annually on fueling generators, according to the Lagos State Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources, Biodun Ogunleye.
Ogunleye made the revelation during the opening of the Lagos Energy Summit themed “The Journey to Energy for All,” held in Lagos on Tuesday.
In his welcome address, the commissioner described the summit as a platform to reflect on the state’s energy challenges and renew commitment to sustainable energy access.
He said a recent Energy Access Diagnostic Study conducted by the ministry in partnership with SEforALL uncovered the staggering extent of Lagosians’ reliance on self-generated electricity.
“Lagos has an estimated 4.5 million generators spread across residential homes, market clusters, and MSMEs,” Ogunleye said.
“These generators consume 16 billion litres of fuel annually, costing Lagosians about N14 trillion at today’s average price of N900 per litre,” he added.
The environmental cost, he noted, is equally alarming, with the generators emitting 38 million tonnes of carbon monoxide annually — a figure that dwarfs the emissions of entire countries like Togo (9.8m), Rwanda (10.6m), and Gabon (10.2m).
He further revealed that these generators collectively produce about 21,000 megawatts of electricity — privately, inefficiently, and expensively.
The study found that 72 percent of households in Lagos own at least one generator, 94 percent of small businesses rely on gensets, and 76 percent of market clusters cannot function without them.
“Add to that the vandalisation of power assets, chronic underinvestment, sector-wide liquidity issues, and the plague of estimated billing, and the picture becomes clear: the people have carried the burden of power failure for far too long,” Ogunleye lamented.
He highlighted that the 2023 Electricity Act signed by President Bola Tinubu has empowered states to take charge of their electricity markets.
Following this, Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu signed the Lagos Electricity Law to reposition the state’s power sector.
The commissioner disclosed that the state is pursuing expressions of interest for gas-fired, grid-scale solar, and captive power projects, all aimed at injecting 6,000 megawatts of power into the Lagos grid within the next three years.
“We are retrofitting 22,000 streetlights across the state to reduce grid pressure and improve energy efficiency,” he added. “Lagos is no longer at the mercy of what doesn’t work. We are building what does.”
In his remarks at the summit, Governor Sanwo-Olu described Nigeria’s ongoing electricity challenges as a national embarrassment.
“We believe that no home should remain in darkness, not in the 21st century. It’s a shame for all of us to still have homes that will be in darkness,” the governor said.
He emphasized that Lagos is committed to building a 24/7 economy powered by clean, reliable, and affordable energy.
“Our vision aligns with global climate goals, Nigeria’s energy transition objective, and our commitment to building a resilient and sustainable future for generations to come,” he said.
Former Minister of Power, Prof. Barth Nnaji, who delivered the keynote address, urged the Federal Government to prioritize the use of Nigeria’s abundant gas reserves to drive power generation.
He praised Lagos State’s efforts to provide power to millions of Nigerians without access to electricity.
Nnaji noted that countries with far less gas than Nigeria, such as Algeria, have achieved nationwide electricity access, calling it unacceptable that millions of Nigerians still live without power.
“Nigeria is blessed with about 210.5 trillion cubic feet of gas, making us the ninth largest reserve holder in the world. If we can’t use that to power our nation, we cannot grow our GDP or prosper,” he said.
He concluded by stressing that energy growth must go hand-in-hand with economic development, calling on both federal and state governments to act decisively.
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