By Ruth Nworie
Unstable electricity supply in Rumuomoi and Rumuigbo communities of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Rivers State, is taking a heavy toll on small businesses, with barbers and traders lamenting rising fuel costs, lost customers, and shrinking profits.
Business owners say they now depend largely on generators, solar power, and rechargeable equipment to stay in operation, a situation they describe as unsustainable.
A professional barber and hairstylist, Promise Samson, who owns a shop in the area, said electricity is mostly available at odd hours when businesses are closed.
“Most times, light comes in the middle of the night when we are not in our shops. During the day, when customers come in, there is usually no power, yet at the end of the month we still pay electricity bills,” he said.
Samson explained that customer traffic in barbing salons cannot be predicted, making unstable electricity a major challenge.
“People can come at any time. If you rely on public power, it will fail you, so you must have a generator or solar. Even the voltage is not stable; some people have full current while others have low voltage that cannot carry anything.”
Although rechargeable clippers help manage the situation, they do not eliminate losses.
“We manage with rechargeable clippers, but without light and fan, customers are not comfortable, and business is reduced,” Samson said.
He noted that fuel expenses often consume most of his daily income, particularly during peak periods such as weekends.
“Sometimes when customers are many in the evening, fuel will finish while people are still waiting. If you leave the shop to buy fuel, some customers may leave, and it is risky to leave the shop unattended.”
He recalled an incident where power fluctuation damaged his electricity supply, leading to significant losses.
“One Sunday, the light was showing on the socket but not working. I had no money to buy fuel and had to charge my clipper in another shop. Before I returned, I had already lost many customers.”
Samson added that unstable power supply has forced service providers to reduce their prices.
“Normally, barbing costs ₦1,000, but when there is no light, fan, or phone charging, customers insist on paying ₦500, which affects our profit.”
He appealed to the government to ensure stable electricity supply for small businesses.
“If we can get at least 10 hours of light during the day and four hours at night, businesses will survive. Even if tariffs increase, people will pay because they are getting value.”
Also speaking, a foodstuff vendor in the area, Baghadom Eucharia, said erratic power supply has severely affected her business and capital.
“Our business depends on electricity. When there is no light, business cannot move,” she said.
Eucharia disclosed that she sometimes records no sales in a day due to lack of power.
“Customers come to ask for cold drinks, but there is no light to keep them cold. Some days, I don’t sell anything at all.”
She lamented that electricity bills are still issued despite poor supply.
“From morning till night, there is no light, yet at the end of the month we are given bills. We only see light in the middle of the night, and it is not stable.”
According to her, inability to afford generator fuel has resulted in losses from spoilt goods.
“Things in the fridge spoil because we cannot afford fuel every day. I have lost a lot, and it has affected my capital.”
She expressed frustration over what she described as neglect of small business owners in the communities.
“It seems like we don’t have leaders here.
Maybe because they have generators, they don’t understand what we are facing.
