CASE STUDY ON GAS TURBINE GENERATION IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Nigeria’s electricity sector remains a critical constraint on economic growth and development despite the country’s vast natural gas resources. Although Nigeria has an installed generation capacity of over 13,000 MW, actual available capacity typically ranges between 4,000 and 5,500 MW, far below national demand estimated at over 20,000 MW. While simple-cycle gas turbines are designed to achieve efficiencies of 28–35%, many Nigerian plants operate at only 15–23%, reflecting substantial performance gaps.
A comparative analysis reveals that while gas turbine generation is more cost-effective than diesel and petrol generators, unreliable supply forces businesses and households to rely on these expensive alternatives. Diesel generation costs (?1,622–?1,650/kWh) are significantly higher than gas turbine generation (?400–?600/kWh), imposing a heavy economic burden on consumers and reducing industrial competitiveness.
This study examines the performance, challenges, and operational efficiency of gas turbine power generators, which form the backbone of Nigeria’s electricity generation system.