The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) says Nigeria’s grid-connected power plants utilized an average of 86% of their available generation capacity in August 2026.
NERC disclosed this in its August 2026 Operational Performance Factsheet published on Thursday. The commission said an average of 4,758 megawatts (MW) was available for dispatch during the month, while average hourly generation stood at 4,102MW, leaving approximately 656MW unused.
Among the major plants, Afam_2 recorded the highest utilization rate at 99%, generating 262MW out of its 265MW available capacity. Kainji_1 followed with 98%, producing 345MW from 352MW, while Egbin_1 operated at 96%, generating 333MW from 347MW.
Ihovbor_2 recorded a 92% utilization rate, with output of 418MW from 454MW available. Other plants reported varying performance levels, including Shiroro_1 and Okpai_1 at 87%, Jebba_1 at 83%, Delta_1 at 80%, Odukpani_1 at 74% and Zungeru_1 at 72%.
NERC said Olorunsogo_1, Omoku_1 and Igbafo_1 achieved full utilization during the period. Omotosho_1 operated at 99%, generating 148MW from 149MW available, while Dadin-Kowa_1 recorded 98% after producing 35MW from 36MW.
The commission, however, reported lower utilization at Afam_1, Ikeja_1 and Ihovbor_1, which recorded 67%, 76% and 79%, respectively. Olorunsogo_2 generated 87MW from 109MW available, while Sapele_1 produced 25MW from 27MW.
Sapele_2, Alaoji_1, Geregu_2 and Ibom Power_1 recorded no generation during the month.
Despite the relatively high capacity utilization, NERC said the national grid experienced breaches of prescribed frequency and voltage limits in August. Average lower and upper grid frequencies were recorded at 49.34Hz and 50.67Hz, respectively, outside the approved range of 49.75Hz to 50.25Hz.
The commission also reported average lower grid voltage of 302.29 kilovolts (kV) and upper grid voltage of 349.68kV, compared with the prescribed range of 313.50kV to 346.50kV.
