Nigeria cuts electricity to Niger after coup

Published August 3, 2023
French soldiers and citizens of European countries are seen outside the Diori Hamani International Airport in Niamey on August 2, 2023. — AFP
French soldiers and citizens of European countries are seen outside the Diori Hamani International Airport in Niamey on August 2, 2023. — AFP

NIAMEY: Nigeria has cut its electricity supply to Niger after West African neighbours imposed sanctions on the junta that ousted the country’s elected leader last week, a Niger power company source said on Wednesday.

“Since yesterday, Nigeria has disconnected the high-voltage line transporting electricity to Niger,” a source at Niger’s power company Nigelec said.

Niger depends on Nigeria for 70 per cent of its power, buying it from the Nigerian company Mainstream, according to Nigelec, the country’s monopoly supplier.

The electricity is generated by the Kainji Dam in western Nigeria.

The capital Niamey has a local production source, but many districts suffered from frequent power cuts even before the coup.

Niger is hoping to achieve energy independence by building the Kandadji Dam on the Niger River, about 180 kilometres upstream from Niamey.

It is scheduled for completion in 2025, with a targeted annual capacity of 629 gigawatt-hours (GWh).

“The sanctions will hurt our country very much,” Prime Minister Ouhoumoudou Mahamadou said on Sunday on the France24.

Published in Dawn, August 3rd, 2023

Opinion

Editorial

IHK resolution
Updated 08 Nov, 2024

IHK resolution

If the BJP administration were to listen to Kashmiris, it could pave the way for the resumption of the political process in IHK.
Climate realities
08 Nov, 2024

Climate realities

THE Air Quality Index in Lahore once again shot past the 1,000-level mark on Wednesday morning, registering at an...
Rule by fear
08 Nov, 2024

Rule by fear

THE abduction of an opposition MNA, as claimed by PTI, is yet another grim episode in Pakistan’s ongoing crisis of...
Trump 2.0
Updated 07 Nov, 2024

Trump 2.0

It remains to be seen how his promises to bring ‘peace’ to Middle East reconcile with his blatantly pro-Israel bias.
Fait accompli
07 Nov, 2024

Fait accompli

A SLEW of secretively conceived and hastily enacted legislation has achieved its intended result: the powers of the...
IPP contracts
07 Nov, 2024

IPP contracts

THE government expects the ongoing ‘negotiations’ with power producers aimed at revising the terms of sovereign...