Week-Long Blackout Deepens Hardship for Adamawa, Taraba Residents

A week-long power shutdown across Adamawa and Taraba states is taking a heavy toll on households and businesses, as thousands remain without electricity following a scheduled outage by the Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC).

The blackout, which began on Monday, December 1, 2025, is part of a major maintenance operation targeting key transmission infrastructure in the region. Despite assurances from the company, many communities have been plunged into total darkness for days, forcing residents and business owners into difficult conditions.

Communities currently affected include Jalingo, Zing, Lau, Mutum-Biyu, Mayo-Belwa, Jeda, Ganye, and Toungo.

Across these areas, residents say the prolonged outage has disrupted daily life and crippled economic activities. In commercial hubs like Jalingo and parts of Adamawa, business owners lamented that the lack of power has stalled operations, increased costs, and resulted in significant revenue losses.

Vendors of essential items—especially sachet water and cold beverages—reported sharp increases in prices due to their inability to run freezers and other equipment. Many small-scale entrepreneurs told our correspondent that staying in business has become a struggle and appealed to YEDC to hasten the maintenance work and restore supply before the December 8 deadline.

According to YEDC, the outage is necessary to allow MBH Power Contractor to complete rehabilitation and reinforcement work at the 330/132kV and 132/33kV transmission stations in Mayo-Belwa, Adamawa State. The Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) has also confirmed that the project involves linking a turn-in-turn-out 330kV transmission line—an upgrade expected to improve power stability across the region once completed.

“During this maintenance period, electricity supply from both the Mayo-Belwa and Jalingo transmission stations will be unavailable,” YEDC reiterated.

As the blackout enters its final days, residents and businesses are hoping the company keeps to its promise and restores power without further delays.