Abia State Governor Alex Otti revealed at Invest Lagos 3.0 that Aba now enjoys 24-hour power supply and said Ariaria Market has been transformed into a 24-hour market, part of a broader plan to disconnect the entire state from the national grid and guarantee electricity across every part of Abia.
Power and industrialization push
“What we want to do in Abia State is to have power in our own hands. In time to come, the entire Abia State will be disconnected from the national grid, and 24-hour electricity supply will be guaranteed across every part of the state,” Otti said at Invest Lagos.
“Electricity matters because about 60–70% of manufacturing costs are tied to energy.”
The governor said he got a call from someone who already owns a steel plant and wants to relocate it to a state with 24-hour electricity.
“I told him to come immediately. I have already allocated 5,000 hectares of land to him close to Geometric.”
Lagos vs. other states
Otti added that Lagos is overpopulated and that it is important for other states to begin to grow.
“We cannot all be mega cities like Lagos, but there are things we can take,” he said, highlighting Abia’s strategy to attract industrial investment by offering reliable power and land.
Otti’s announcement positions Abia State as a potential industrial hub outside Lagos, leveraging 24-hour power supply to address the critical energy constraint that accounts for 60–70% of manufacturing costs in Nigeria. The allocation of 5,000 hectares of land close to Geometric Power plant signals the state is ready to host large-scale industrial projects, particularly in steel and other energy-intensive sectors.
The move to disconnect Abia from the national grid and build independent power infrastructure reflects a growing trend among Nigerian states to take control of electricity supply after years of grid instability. If Abia successfully delivers 24-hour power across the state, it could attract significant industrial relocation from Lagos, where overpopulation and power challenges are constraining business expansion.
The steel plant relocation offer demonstrates how reliable power can be a decisive factor in industrial location decisions. Investors will watch whether the steel plant owner actually relocates and whether other manufacturers follow, testing Abia’s ability to become a viable alternative to Lagos for industrial development. The success of this strategy could inspire other states to pursue similar independent power models to drive industrialization.
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