Electricity Decentralisation Must Attract Investment, Not Fragment NESI, NISO Chief Warns

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO), Engr. Abdu Bello Mohammed, has called for stronger coordination among stakeholders in Nigeria’s electricity industry, warning that decentralisation must promote investment and growth rather than fragment infrastructure development.

Mohammed made the call at the Africa Energy Leadership Summit 2026, holding at the Landmark Centre, Lagos, from October 27 to 29.

He said Nigeria’s evolving electricity market required coordinated infrastructure planning, system operations and information management as more states establish their electricity markets and regulatory institutions under the Electricity Act 2023.

According to him, the emergence of multiple electricity markets, independent transmission infrastructure providers, decentralised generation and new distribution networks is creating fresh demands for coordination across the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).

He explained that NISO was expanding its role beyond conventional grid operations to function as a neutral technical integrator, system coordinator and market facilitator.

The approach, he said, would provide the planning, operational and market coordination mechanisms required to ensure that different institutions and market participants operate efficiently within the wider electricity ecosystem.

Mohammed, however, clarified that NISO’s expanding responsibilities did not extend to regulating state electricity markets or diminish the statutory functions of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and state electricity regulatory authorities.

He stressed that effective coordination was becoming increasingly important as state electricity networks connect to the national transmission grid, exchange electricity across state boundaries or depend on shared transmission infrastructure.

Poorly coordinated investments, he warned, could undermine the potential benefits of decentralisation.

To address the challenge, Mohammed said NISO was promoting Integrated Resource Planning methodologies to ensure that investments in generation, transmission and distribution complemented one another.

He explained that the approach would help ensure that electricity infrastructure projects were technically compatible, economically justified and aligned with the industry’s long-term development priorities.

The NISO chief also identified digitalisation and access to reliable industry data as critical to improving coordination, transparency and investor confidence.

He disclosed that the organisation was pursuing the development of a centralised data infrastructure for NESI to consolidate, validate, manage and share critical electricity industry information.

“Our vision is a Nigerian electricity industry that is decentralised in its development opportunities, integrated in its infrastructure planning, coordinated in its operations, transparent in its market administration and attractive to sustainable private investment,” Mohammed said.

He urged state governments, regulators, investors, development partners and technology providers to collaborate with NISO to translate the opportunities created by the Electricity Act 2023 into measurable improvements in electricity access, reliability and affordability.

Mohammed said effective collaboration would be essential to ensuring that the ongoing transformation of Nigeria’s electricity market supports sustainable investment and broader economic development.