The Generator as a Product in Nigeria

Situation Report: In Nigeria, the generator business is a booming and lucrative one indeed, given the chronic inadequate generation and supply of electricity monopolised by politics. Generators have been imported into the country since independence, and the sales volume is increasing daily, an increase inversely proportional to the inadequacies of the State-controlled electricity enterprise.

Zillions of dollars have been budgeted and spent by various governments promising to end the blackouts in no time, but none of those promises have been fulfilled, so the people fend for themselves in any way they can. The generators, 100% imported, come in all sizes and power ratings, depending on one’s purchasing power. By far the most popular one, the staple generator, if you like, is the smallest and cheapest, nicknamed, … better than my neighbour. The power rates between 650 watts (0.7KVA) and 500,000 watts (500KVA), or more. The petrol generators used to rate between 650 and 7,500 watts maximum, All generators above 7.5KVA in Nigeria used to be diesel based, but very recently, I have seen 10KVA petrol generators on sale.

Origins: Most, if not all generators in the 700 to 10,000-watt range imported into Nigeria come from China, evidently because they are far cheaper than other ones Nigerians prefer to call ‘original’ for having more quality and being more expensive. That means they know or believe that these made-in-China generators are inferior in quality, but the average Nigerian has no alternative because he lost his purchasing power in 1986 and has not recovered it till today.

That was the year the Nigerian Naira was devalued against the Dollar, from 1 dollar = 1 Naira to 1 dollar = 3 Naira, after an expensive three-month National Debate called by the Government to ask Nigerians if they wanted an IMF loan tied to devaluation of their currency. At the end of the debate, Nigerians emphatically said NO to IMF and Devaluation. That government went ahead anyway, ignored Nigerians and did what it wanted, devalued the Naira, and that devaluation has continued till today. No country in the world has seen its currency devalued in leaps and bounds like the Nigerian Naira. Today 1 Dollar exchanges for 380 Naira (a la Central Bank), and 484 Naira (a la Parallel (Black) Market). Once upon a time, there was what you could call normal poverty in Nigeria, but today, there is an abnormal, man-made, heinous crime-inducing and deadly poverty in the land, thanks a hundred percent to continuous and continual currency devaluation without the worldwide practice of concomitant adjustment of incomes to cushion the effect of such devaluations. That is a Nigerian story for another day. Right now, the story is about generators.

It does not mean that China cannot manufacture goods of standards comparable to the developed world, it is just that some manufacturer has agreed with some importer to make the product deliberately inferior in order to make the price cheaper for the impoverished masses of Nigeria and, indeed, of all of Africa. I doubt that the types of inferior quality Made-in-China products found all over Africa are used in China itself. I believe there is a deliberate Made-for-Africa production line in many a manufacturer’s place.

So, inferior goods have served the people of Nigeria all these years and they are used to it. I look for made-in-other-countries generators and I find almost none. Some in this range come from Europe, but are found mostly in a few big and expensive supermarkets. This looks like proof that made-in-the West cannot compete with made-in-China in these markets. The big generators, 7.5KVA and above, are imported from Europe and America, with a few from China and places like Turkey. This range is in the hands of the big-time big-company importers, some with exclusive distributorship for Nigeria and/or West Africa.

Brands: The generator brands in Nigeria are many indeed. The petrol range has names like Yamaha (which disappeared years ago and is replaced by fake unbranded ones with printed Yamaha labels pasted on them. Once in a while you see the original Japanese ones, 3 – 5 KVA, very expensive in shopping malls and big supermarkets), Honda (same fate as Yamaha), Tiger (this one is the real Asian Tiger of Nigeria, dominated the small gen market for years but is now seriously challenged by other brands with strange-sounding names, and very unreliable (Personal experience and generator technicians tell me that the smallest reliable generator one can buy in Nigeria today start from 1KVA and are equipped with the Automatic Voltage Regulator (AVG), which the 650-900 watt gens do not have. The important word here is the AVR because recently the smallest Tigers that used to work well with capacitors have become very troublesome. Changes of various parts like capacitor, carburetor, piston, rings and even the exhaust pot have become too common due to lack of genuine parts). Many people think they all come from the same manufacturer with different brand names. An importer can basically bring in completely unbranded generators and print any name and paste on them), Elemax (big challenge to Tiger), Firman:  (big challenge to Tiger), Parsun: (new kid on the block, selling fast)  Senwei: (new kid on the block, selling fast) plus two or three more new ones. Once in a while you see a new name, all Chinese. American and European generator brands are so absent from Nigeria because of their prohibitive prices occasioned by the scourge of currency devaluation. Some exceptions exist in the domain of rich big companies who do custom importation of the best quality generators, mostly diesel, for plant and manufacturing operations.

Pricing: For the petrol generator range, retail prices are between =N=30,000 and  =N=650,000. In the diesel range, 10KVA – 500,000KVA, prices are from =N=700,000 to the millions.

It will be interesting to know how the generator is fairing in other parts of the world. Do they have blackouts in other countries and do people use generators everyday in their homes and offices? Nigerians, for one, have had and are still having a nightmare in respect of electricity and its alternatives, because even when you have the generator, there is still no guaranty you would get the petrol or diesel you need to run it.

Recommendations: Based on my research on this product from many countries of the world, it is highly recommended that Nigerians who can afford it should start sourcing and importing their own generators – and indeed any importable thing they need – directly from abroad, from the United States, from the European Union, from China and indeed, from anywhere in the world, as long as you are satisfied with the quality and the price. When it comes to quality, generators with copper coil are the best. Please make sure to buy only copper-coil generators and avoid the ones that come with aluminum coil.

In this age of the wonder called Internet and the global village, one can buy online directly from the manufacturer’s website or from any online store and have the product shipped to your address in Nigeria or anywhere in the world. This will be much cheaper for you than buying from commercial importers who make for their own profit before selling to you.

A good example: a 5KVA original US-made petrol generator costs just $400, which is about 189,000 Naira ex-US. Let’s say after shipping and Customs and clearing and forwarding, it comes to about 250,000 Naira. It is still cheaper than buying from the supermarket in Lagos or Abuja, where 5KVA will cost you between 250,000 and 800,000, depending on the brand. Checkout any sales outlet in Nigeria to verify, that is, if you can be sure of the quality of what you get.

Watch the short video below to learn more.

The Generator in Nigeria

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