No three-month promise on power grid repairs — Tegbe

Nigeria’s Minister-designate for Power, Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe, has denied reports claiming he pledged to fix the country’s troubled power grid within three months, describing the reports as a distortion of his comments during his Senate screening.

In a statement issued on Thursday through his spokesperson, Adeola Adelabu, Tegbe clarified that he never gave a specific three-month deadline for resolving Nigeria’s electricity challenges.

“Our attention has been drawn to inaccurate media reports alleging that the Honourable Minister-designate, Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe, promised to fix Nigeria’s power grid within three months. This claim is a clear misrepresentation of his remarks,” the statement read.

According to the statement, Tegbe told senators during his screening on May 6, 2026, that timelines for reforms in the power sector were still being developed and would depend on consultations with stakeholders as well as technical assessments of the sector.

The statement noted that while efforts to stabilise the national grid would commence within his first 100 days in office, broader reforms involving gas supply, electricity metering and restoring confidence in the sector could take up to one year.

“My promise to this chamber is that Nigerians will see visible improvement in the sector,” Tegbe was quoted as saying during the screening.

The minister-designate also pledged to stabilise the grid, modernise electricity infrastructure, improve commercial operations within the sector and enforce accountability across the power value chain.

On electricity tariffs, Tegbe reportedly assured lawmakers that ongoing reforms would protect vulnerable consumers while also promoting sustainability, investor confidence and operational efficiency.

“The Minister-Designate remains open to constructive media engagement and welcomes requests for clarification where necessary, recognising the role of the media as partners in nation-building, especially in fostering accurate public understanding of the imminent reforms in the power sector,” the statement added.

President Bola Tinubu recently nominated Tegbe as Minister of Power following a cabinet reshuffle that led to the exit of Adebayo Adelabu from the ministry.