Constant Electricity

Guess what?

We now have constant electricity! I don't know if i've ever mentioned this, but in Nigeria, don’t expect to get electricity 24/7, even if you pay your bills! You see, Nigeria has only one electricity company: NEPA (Nigerian Electric Power Authority). Well, actually, it’s been renamed PHCN (Power Holder Company of Nigeria) but everyone still calls it NEPA. NEPA’s got some problems: there can be power outages at anytime, anywhere. It gets worse in big cities, and gets better in smaller cities. I don’t know what’s wrong with them, but it’s bad. There are some rare spots that have constant electricity, but pretty much everywhere else has problems. So, a lot of people have generators. Most people in the states don’t know about generators, but all they are, are big motor-looking things that generate personal electricity when NEPA is malfunctioning. We have one too: it looks red and is pretty big, and loud. But generators need fuel, and fuel needs money. Luckily, about a day of generator would drain half of the tank, and NEPA doesn’t usually go out for the long. We also have something else called an inverter, which charges a battery that we have (it weighs a ton, literally) and when NEPA goes, it automatically gives us electricity. And it makes no sound. And it can last for as long as a week! NEPA never stays out for that long. And it only takes about 8 hours to charge! So, in other words, we have 24/7 electricity. My parents want to share this stuff with the other Nigerians who only know about generators. We’re also trying to teach ourselves and them about solar energy and wind power. I’m just glad we’ve got the power!

Signing off,

The Traveler