Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) said that it was actively working to restore bulk power supply in the Northern regions of the country, despite facing significant security challenges.
On October 22, 2024, TCN had reported power outages affecting the north-east, north-west, and parts of north-central Nigeria due to a fault that caused the tripping of the 330 kV Ugwaji–Apir double circuit transmission lines 1 and 2 at approximately 4:53 AM.
Two days later, TCN announced that its technicians had identified the fault responsible for the disruption.
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However, some media outlets had indicated that repairs might be delayed due to security concerns affecting critical transmission lines.
In response to these concerns, Ndidi Mbah, TCN’s General Manager of Public Affairs, stated that the company was collaborating with security agencies to expedite the repair of the vandalised Shiroro-Kaduna line.
This line is crucial for delivering bulk electricity to major cities in the north, including Kaduna and Kano.
“Contrary to media reports suggesting an indefinite power outage in parts of Northern Nigeria, erroneously attributed to the Executive Director (Independent System Operator), Engr. (Mrs) Nafisatu Ali, while speaking at the recently held NERC public hearing, TCN would like to state categorically that it is working diligently to restore bulk power supply as quickly as possible despite prevailing security challenges,” Mbah said.
“Engr. (Mrs) Nafisatu Ali, in her address at the hearing, said that the Shiroro-Kaduna transmission line, which supplies power to Northern Nigeria, was vandalized by insurgents and in response, TCN has partnered with the National Security Adviser’s office to secure the area, enabling her engineers to work safely on the restoration.
“Engr. Ali emphasised that deploying engineers without security support is not feasible, given the risks in the region.
“She therefore dispelled any suggestion that restoration would be indefinite, stressing that TCN’s focus remains on ensuring an even supply of electricity nationwide and that security arrangements were underway.
“The current outage affecting Northern states for several days now is a result of vandalism of the Shiroro-Mando transmission line – a critical infrastructure that supplies electricity to the region.
“Prevailing insecurity in the area has delayed the immediate repair necessary to restore supply.”
TCN said it has provided a temporary measure by rerouting the bulk power supply through the Ugwuaji-Apir 330 kilovolt (kV) line, which recently tripped.
“TCN has been collaborating closely with the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) to work with our engineers to access the vandalism site to enable them to effect necessary repairs,” Mbah said.
“This is vital to ensure the safety of lives during the repairs.
“We remain steadfast in our commitment to overcoming these challenges because we understand the place of electricity in the socio-economic lives of the people and the extreme inconveniences this situation is causing the government and all electricity customers in all the affected areas.”
