The national network collapsed again and plunged the country into total darkness.

In a tweet on the handle, the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) announced the development and urged Nigerians to be patient.

“Hi, please be aware that there has just been a national network collapse that has disrupted our franchise territories. We apologize for the inconvenience and appeal to you pending the recovery of the TCN. We are sorry for the caused discomfort,” AEDC tweeted.

In addition, Kaduna Electricity Management, in a statement signed by Abdulazeez Abdullahi, the corporate communications manager, said it was “sorry to inform you that the current disruption our franchise states are experiencing is due to a national network collapse.” The collapse happened around 6:29 p.m. tonight.

The latest collapse, the third in less than a month, came despite assurances from the federal government that it has taken steps to address the problem.

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), which operates the network, said it had developed alternative ways to manage the network last month.