Every morning at 5 a.m., Chinasa Asonye wakes up to switch on a generator powering the pumping machine at her fish farm.
For years, this was how her working day began. Just as night was giving way to morning, she would start the generator and wait for the ponds to fill up. Without the machine, keeping her fish farm operational would be difficult.
But maintaining that routine came at a growing cost.
“I was buying fuel almost four times every week and spending nearly N30,000 each time.
“When I calculated the cost of fuel and generator maintenance, I realised I was spending almost N400,000 every month just to keep the generator running,” she lamented to our correspondent.
Eventually, the economics stopped making sense, Asonye switched to solar power.
For her, the decision was not necessarily about embracing a new technology.
It was about finding a more sustainable way to keep her business running without committing a large share of its resources to fuel and generator maintenance.
Asonye’s experience reflects a financial dilemma facing many Nigerian households and businesses that depend on petrol and diesel generators to compensate for unreliable electricity supply.
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For years, generators have provided a familiar solution to Nigeria’s electricity challenges.
Their relatively accessible purchase prices made them an option for households and businesses seeking an alternative to inconsistent grid supply.
But the cost of keeping them running has become a growing consideration as fuel prices and maintenance expenses rise.
Findings by BusinessDay showed that increased fuel costs and other factors created opportunities for solar power systems to thrive.
The changing economics are also creating opportunities for businesses that previously depended on generator sales.
From selling generators to stocking solar
At Chinedu Obi’s appliance shop in Lagos, solar panels of different sizes now occupy space among the products on display.
For more than a decade, Obi operated within the generator and appliance ecosystem, initially concentrating on generator sales before expanding into spare parts.
Solar products, however, were not part of his original business plan.
That changed as customers began asking for products he did not stock.
“I just noticed that people were always asking for solar panels and batteries. Things that I didn’t have in my store at the time. It wasn’t until my generator sales started trickling that I decided to introduce solar panels,” Obi told BusinessDay.
The growing enquiries presented an opportunity to diversify his business at a time when generator sales were becoming less encouraging.
“Today, I have made more sales from solar sales than generators,” he added.
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Obi declined to provide figures comparing sales of the two product categories, making it difficult to establish the extent of the change.
His experience, however, illustrated how changing consumer preferences can create new commercial opportunities, even for retailers whose businesses were traditionally built around generators.
Changing economics of generator ownership
BusinessDay observed that the financial considerations behind the shift extend beyond the initial price of purchasing a generator.
A generator requires a continuing supply of petrol or diesel, alongside servicing, repairs and replacement parts. These expenses accumulate for as long as the machine remains in use.
According to solar experts polled by BusinessDay, people who previously considered petrol generators for backup electricity are now exploring solar panels, inverters and battery systems as alternatives that could reduce their recurring energy expenses.
Messiah Ameh, an energy expert, said operating and maintenance costs were significant factors behind declining interest in generator purchases.
“The reason we see generator sales dropping is due to cost, both operational and maintenance costs,” he said in a telephone interview.
He also identified safety and convenience as considerations, particularly for people who have to switch off their generators at night.
According to Ameh, a household operating a 3.5kVA generator every evening might previously have spent about N3,000 weekly on petrol when a litre averaged N185.
He, however, lamented that the economics have changed considerably with higher fuel prices.
Data from Dailyfuels put the average prices of petrol and diesel between N1,335 and N1,861 per litre at the time of reporting.
Ameh estimated that some generator users could now spend between N10,000 and N15,000 daily on fuel, depending on the generator’s capacity and the number of hours it operates.
It was discovered that this difference contributed to why the cost of electricity generated independently has become a more pressing consideration for consumers.
A generator’s purchase price may represent only the initial commitment. Its continued operation creates recurring expenditure that households and businesses must accommodate, regardless of whether electricity from the national grid improves.
For consumers with substantial electricity requirements, these recurring expenses can influence decisions about whether to continue operating conventional generators or invest in alternative power systems.
Isaac Idoko, a Lagos-based energy analyst, said dissatisfaction with fuel expenditure and inconsistent electricity supply was contributing to growing interest in solar.
“People are tired of spending money on fuel and dealing with inconsistent power supply. This is why solar adoption is growing,” he said.
A market responding to the cost of power
BusinessDay’s analysis showed that the pressure on generator users is reflected in wider estimates of fuel expenditure.
A report by ZE-Gen, a financing and investment platform, found that annual fuel spending ballooned to $8 billion across 41 million small businesses and 17 million households covered by its analysis of 12 months of smart-meter data and market research.
The report identified fuel costs and frequent repairs as major concerns for generator users.
It found that 20 percent of surveyed customers had stopped using generators following fuel price increases, while five percent had already switched to solar.
These findings point to the financial pressures influencing decisions about independent electricity supply, although the distinction between consumers stopping generator use and those specifically adopting solar is important.
The figures also suggest that rising fuel expenditure is not merely an inconvenience for generator users. For businesses, it represents an operating cost that can affect how much money remains available for other activities.
BusinessDay also observed that the increasing cost of generators themselves adds another dimension to the decision.
A 4.5kVA Sensei generator currently sells for around N230,000, compared with an average of N120,000 some years ago, representing an increase of about 92 percent.
Tiger generators, popularly known as ‘I pass my neighbour’, have also become more expensive, with prices rising to roughly N150,000 from about N25,000 some years ago.
Findings by this paper showed that these increases mean that consumers face both the initial expense of acquiring a generator and the recurring cost of running it.
At the same time, growing activity in the solar equipment market is becoming visible through import data.
Figures obtained from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that Nigeria imported 2.9 million solar panels valued at more than N435 billion in 2025.
Precious Ozegbe, founder of Zuxer Energy, a solar support company, said consumers needed to consider the total cost of generator ownership rather than focusing only on the purchase price.
“When you consider the cost of obtaining a generator, the cost of maintaining it, servicing it, and the cost of fuel over a period of time, you realise that solar is safer and more energy-friendly,” he said.
The upfront cost problem
Despite the potential savings, moving away from generators is not an equally accessible option for every consumer.
While generator operating expenses accumulate over time, solar systems require a substantial initial investment in panels, inverters and batteries.
For many households and small businesses, the upfront cost can be difficult to accommodate, even where a solar installation could potentially reduce their long-term electricity expenses.
The ZE-Gen report identified high initial costs and inflexible financing arrangements as major obstacles preventing more households and businesses from switching from fossil-fuel generators to solar alternatives.
This creates a difficult financial trade-off. Consumers may recognise the potential long-term savings associated with solar but still lack the resources to finance the initial installation.
It was observed that the economics also depend on the system’s capacity and the amount of electricity required.
A household powering a few essential appliances will have different installation requirements from a business operating machinery or refrigeration equipment.
Battery storage, inverter capacity, panel requirements, installation and eventual maintenance all influence the total investment.
Ozegbe acknowledged that the initial investment could be high but argued that the economics should be assessed over the system’s operational lifetime.
“The upfront cost can be high, but the levelised energy costs for solar systems are much bigger than generators in the long run,” he added.
Feyishola Jaiyesimi is a writer and storyteller. She currently writes for the energy desk at BusinessDay with a focus on renewable energy and environmental issues. She began her journalism career as an agricultural reporter and now covers the energy sector, including oil, gas, electricity, environment, and renewables. She has been selected for professional training by the US Consulate, Lagos. She is a 2025 Dataphyte Biodiversity Reporting Fellow. Feyishola holds a bachelor’s degree in Zoology and Environmental Biology from Ekiti State University.
