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Tag: Ndidi Mbah

  • JUST IN: IBEDC, Ikeja Electric, others impacted as fire guts TCN transformer

    JUST IN: IBEDC, Ikeja Electric, others impacted as fire guts TCN transformer

    The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) said a fire incident at Egbin Power Plc at about 6:30 a.m. on Tuesday affected its 150 Mega Volt Ampere (MVA) transformer at the Egbin Transmission Substation.

    TCN’s General Manager, Public Affairs, Mrs Ndidi Mbah, on Wednesday disclosed this in a statement issued in Abuja.

    She explained that the fire originated from one of the power station’s service transformers, owned by Egbin Power, which was directly connected to the 33 Kilo Volt (kV) side of TCN’s 150MVA 330/132/33kV Inter-Bus Transformer II.

    According to her, preliminary investigations traced the cause of the fire to a faulty 33kV instrument transformer (CT/VT) installed by Egbin Power, which caught fire.

    “This ultimately led to the damage of a 150MVA power transformer belonging to TCN, causing oil leakage from the transformer due to a tear in its main tank.

    “As a result of the incident, there is a temporary reduction in bulk power supply to Ikorodu and Odogunyan 132/33kV transmission substations, which supply Ikeja Electricity  Distribution Company (IKEDC) and parts of Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) franchise areas, as well as Sagamu Line 1, Sagamu Line 2, and Maryland Line 2 on the 132kV network within Lagos State,” he said.

    Mbah said that at the time of the incident, a total load of 47 Mega Watts (MW) was affected.

    She said that the load was immediately diverted to the second available 150MVA power transformer within the substation, which was now operating under strain.

    Mbah also noted that following the incident, the capacity deficit had increased and remained high, resulting in load-shedding across all affected areas.

    She said that the company was working diligently to replace the damaged transformer and restore normal power supply as soon as possible, and appealed for more time.

    “TCN has already notified the  IKEDC and Eko  Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) to assist in load management within their franchise areas.

    “On our part, TCN is already making urgent arrangements to source the replacement transformer. We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience this is causing the two distribution companies and electricity customers in the affected areas.

    “And pledge to work hard to ensure full restoration of bulk supply to the substations in the shortest possible time.

  • 18 transmission towers vandalised in January -TCN

    18 transmission towers vandalised in January -TCN

    The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) says more than 18 transmission towers were vandalised between Jan 9 and Jan 14 across Rivers, Abia, and Kano states.

    Mrs Ndidi Mbah, General Manager, Public Affairs,  TCN said this in a statement in Abuja on Sunday.

    Mbah said that Mr  Emmanuel Okpa, General Manager, Transmission TCN’S Port Harcourt Region, reported that routine patrols by linesmen on Jan. 10,  uncovered damage to towers 171 through towers 181 and 184.

    She said that on Jan. 14, vandals targeted towers 146, 147, and 149 along the Owerri/Ahoada 132 Kilo Volt kV line in Rivers, removing base brackets and compromising the stability of the towers.

    “In Abia State, Mr  Azuh Lucky, Head of the Lines Department for the region, reported the theft of bolts, nuts, and structural members from towers 160 to 162 on the Alaoji/Umuahia 132kV line.

    ”Meanwhile, in Kano, towers 105, 106, and 107 along the Katsina-Gazoua 132/33kV transmission line were critically damaged by vandals on Jan. 9,  compromising their structural integrity and risking collapse.

    ”In  the early hours of Jan.17,  vandalised 132kV underground transmission cables were discovered by TCN engineers near Millennium Park in Abuja. This affected power supply to the central area and its environs.

    ”These incidents pose a significant challenge to TCN’S operations as a company ” she said.

    She said that the company had bolstered security measures, increased lines patrol and the number of vigilante groups, and is also collaborating with security operatives.

    Mbah said that the company was appealing for the full support of every Nigerian, particularly those in communities hosting TCN’S installations.

    “Nigerians  must collectively recognise that the transmission network is our collective asset and essential for our socioeconomic development.

    ”The vandals and those who buy stolen materials are sabotaging the nation. All hands must be on deck to ensure the growth of the country’s power sector, which is critical to the development of our country

    ”TCN’s grid expansion plans are under tremendous strain due to the persistent vandalism of its installations,” she said.

    She said that the financial implications of constant repairs to vandalised transmission installations, along with the stress on the grid, were having adverse effects on TCNs grid expansion drive.

    ”This is a clarion call for everyone to join forces with TCN to put an end to this menace and safeguard our  electricity network,” Mbah said.

  • Blackout in Northern region: TCN gives condition to commence work on second transmission line

    Blackout in Northern region: TCN gives condition to commence work on second transmission line

    The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has disclosed that its engineering team is preparing to commence work on the second 330kV transmission line to restore electricity fully in the Northern region of the country.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports TCN made this known in a statement issued by Mrs Ndidi Mbah, TCN’S General Manager Public Affairs, in Abuja on Thursday while confirming that bulk power supply has been restored to parts of Northern Nigeria after weeks of blackout.

    The company confirmed it successfully restored bulk power supply through its 330 Kilo Volt (kV) Ugwuaji-Apir transmission line I as at 4:56 pm on Wednesday.

    The company said that power supply was restored to Lafia, Makurdi, Jos, Kaduna, Kano, Bauchi, and Gombe following the completion of repairs on the vandalised section of the Ugwuaji-Apir transmission line.

    Mbah said that with the restoration of the line, the Apir-Lafia 330kV transmission line 2 was now operational and also bulk power transmission had been restored to the states.

    ”As restoration efforts continue, with the TCN engineering team preparing to commence work on the second 330kV transmission line. All necessary materials for the repairs are on hand.

    ”Work will begin as soon as the site is secured for the safety of TCN’s personnel to the affected sections of the vandalised 330kV transmission line II.

    ”In the meantime, teams of linesmen will re-patrol the 330kV line II to ensure that no other sections are impacted as the repair works progress,”she said.

    TCN said it appreciates the patience and understanding from those affected as its engineers work diligently to restore the 330kV transmission line II.

    TCN  also recognises the importance of electricity in Nigerians daily lives and is committed to ensuring that this line is repaired swiftly, thereby increasing the bulk power to the affected areas by the incident.

    Kano residents jubilate restoration of electricity

    Meanwhile, there was a wild jubilation as electricity was restored to the ancient Kano city and its environs, North’s commercial hub, after days of blackout due to a grid collapse.

    Nigeria had obnoxiously witnessed many national grid collapses in 2024. They included those in February. 4, March 28, April 15 and July 6 and most recently in October 14 also in October 15, just some hours after service was restored, there was another grid collapse.

    Many of the residents who spoke on the restoration of the power supply expressed appreciation for what they described as a big relief in view of the hot weather and the collapse of many businesses that largely depend on electricity.

    Ali Musa, a resident of Nasarawa, said that the restoration of electricity was a big relief considering the heat in the day time.

    “This is a big relief to us as we battle with the high cost of petrol to power our homes and businesses,” he explained.

    Amina Shehu, a resident of Tarauni, said that she had been buying sachet water ice blocks for N300 per one and hoped the price would now go down drastically with the restoration of electricity.

    “I spend N1,000 daily to buy an ice block to cool my drinks and another N2,000 to fuel my generator at home. Thank God the power has been restored,” she said.

    Simon Isaac, a resident of Kumbotso, who operates a barbing saloon, said they were happy to resume full business as using a generator was not cost-effective.

    Isaac urged the federal government to decentralise the national grid so as to reduce the pressure on the main grid

    Another resident of the farm centre, Dayyabu Sani, who expressed his happiness, said he hoped that the government would find a lasting solution to the recurring  problem. He urged the government to invest in renewable energy and also provide mini grids.

  • TCN towers vandalised along Jos-Gombe 330KV transmission line

    TCN towers vandalised along Jos-Gombe 330KV transmission line

    The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) says  four of its towers  along  the  Jos – Gombe 330 Kilo Volt (kV) transmission line have been vandalised.

    The company said that the incident took place at about 3:32pm on Monday.

    Mrs Ndidi Mbah, TCN’S General Manager Public Affairs said this in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday.

    Mbah said  that when the  transmission line tripped, TCN operators attempted to restore it to service but it tripped again.

    She said that this prompted the dispatch of TCN men  to trace the line in order to detect and rectify the fault.

    According to her, while  tracing the fault, TCN’s engineering crew discovered that towers 288, 289 , 290, and 291 were vandalised and that some tower members were carted away.

    ”Also, the towers had equally collapsed as a result of the incident.

    ”Presently, bulk power supply to Gombe, Yola, and Jalingo substations have been disrupted, affecting bulk power supply to parts of Yola  and Jos Electricity Distribution Companies’ franchise areas,”she said.

    Mbah said that to mitigate the effect of the incident on electricity consumers affected by the incident, TCN tried to  back feed Gombe through its 132kV transmission line from Bauchi and subsequently  Ashaka, Potiskum, Damaturu, and Billiri/ Savannah.

    She vowed that the company  would do everything humanly possible to ensure that supply was restored to the affected areas, while efforts were being made to reconstruct the  vandalised towers.

  • Shiroro-Katampe transmission line vandalised –TCN

    Shiroro-Katampe transmission line vandalised –TCN

    The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), says  one of its critical infrastructure, the Shiroro-Katampe 330 Kilo Volt (kV) transmission line has been vandalised.

    Mrs Ndidi Mbah, TCN’ s General Manager, Public Affairs said this in a statement in Abuja  on Sunday.

    According to Mbah, this is the  fifth of such incident between February  and March.

    Mbah said that at  approximately 9 a. m. on Sunday, the Shiroro-Katampe transmission line experienced a trip.

    She  said that following  initial investigations, TCN engineers attempted to restore operation but were unsuccessful.

    ”Subsequently, efforts were made to identify the fault location. Hence, linesmen were dispatched to physically patrol the suspected area.

    ”During the fault tracing process, the  vigilante team leaders in the vicinity notified TCN linesmen of vandalism along the  transmission line.

    ”The company’s personnel confirmed the vandalisation of  the transmission line 1, from Towers 244 to 245, and the  conductors stolen,” she said.

    According to her, the company is currently mobilising for conductor replacement, pending the  completion of security operations at the site.

    “The second line remains fully operational, in conjunction with the Gwagwalada 330kV line serving the Kukwaba-Apo axis.”

    She said that the wheeling capacity  of TCN towards Abuja and environs would be enhanced by the Lokoja – Gwagwalada 330kV transmission line.

    ”The company is working hard to minimise the adverse effect of these acts of sabotage on  bulk power supply to Abuja and environs.

    ”This incident adds to a series of vandalism incidents recorded by TCN in February, including the destruction of Tower 70 along the Gwagwalade-Katampe transmission line on Feb. 26.

    ”Other incidents include the vandalisation of towers 377 and 378 along the Gombe-Damaturu 330kV transmission line on Feb. 23,” she said.

    Mbah said that there was also an  attack on towers 145 to 149 and 201 to 218 along the Owerri-Ahoda 132kV transmission line on Feb. 15.

    She said that on Feb. 1, Tower 388 along the Jos-Bauchi 132kV single circuit transmission line also collapsed due to vandalism.

    According to Mbah, these acts of sabotage are unacceptable and urged relevant security agencies and host communities to collaborate in apprehending the perpetrators.

    ”Protection of the nation’s transmission infrastructure is paramount, and collective efforts are required to curb these incidents.

    ”The company calls on all Nigerians to assist in reporting such acts of vandalism. Electricity infrastructure is a national asset, and safeguarding it is a collective responsibility,” she said.

  • TCN confirms destruction of 3 towers on Maiduguri

    TCN confirms destruction of 3 towers on Maiduguri

    The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) on Friday  confirmed the destruction of three of its towers on Maiduguri – Damaturu Transmission Line by suspected insurgents using explosives.

    Mrs Ndidi Mbah, the General Manager, Public Affairs, TCN, said this in a statement in Abuja.

    Mbah said that in addition to the destruction of the towers, an officer of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) was also killed during the attack.

    ”It’s truly another very sad day for us at TCN, with this incident, especially with the loss of life of the NSCDC official.

    ”TCN comensurates with the family of the deceased and the NSCDC for this very sad and shocking incident,” the statement reads.

  • Darkness looms as vandals bring down TCN’s towers

    Darkness looms as vandals bring down TCN’s towers

    The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) on Friday said that one of its towers T372 around Katsaita Village in Yobe was vandalised on Thursday.

    The company said the vandals brought down the 330 Kilo Volt (KV) transmission tower which pulled down another tower T373 along the same transmission line route.

    Mrs Ndidi Mbah, TCN’s General Manager Public Affairs, said this in a statement in Abuja.

    Mbah said the incident, which took place at about 9.18 p.m. on Thursday, brought about power failure to parts of Yobe and Borno States.

    According to her, TCN’s engineers while patrolling the line to ascertain the cause of the cut in power supply, discovered that the fallen towers and the villagers confirmed they heard a loud explosion before the tower came down.

    ”On closer investigation, the engineers found evidence of explosive used by the vandals in bringing down the towers.

    ”Presently, TCN had mobilised one of its contractors to the site of the incident to commence the reconstruction of the transmission towers damaged by the vandals.

    ”TCN strongly condemned the incident and regrets the inconvenience caused to the government and people of Yobe and Borno states,”she said.

    Mbah said that the company would do all that was possible to quickly re-erect the towers to restore power supply to the affected areas.

    ”We are once again making an urgent appeal to host communities to collaborate with TCN in the fight against vandalism and the necessary preservation of power infrastructure nationwide as our collective asset.”

  • JUST IN: TCN breaks silence on National Grid collapse

    JUST IN: TCN breaks silence on National Grid collapse

    The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has finally opened up on the National Grid that collapsed on Thursday night at about 12:40 a.m.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports TCN to have said restoration of the national grid has reached advanced stages.

    According to a statement by the electricity transmission company obtained by TNG, power supply is now available in the West, North Central, South, East, and a large portion of the Northern parts of the country.

    The company in the statement disclosed that in the course of the grid restoration, the process initially suffered a setback, which TCN said does not amount to another collapse.

    “In the course of any grid restoration process, challenges may be encountered. This happened today while the grid restoration was in progress, but it was promptly addressed,” the company stated.

    The statement signed by Ndidi Mbah, GM, Public Affairs of TCN reads in full below:

    The Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, hereby notes that grid restoration nationwide is in progress and has reached advanced stages with power supply now available in the West, North Central, South, East, and a large portion of the Northern parts of the country.

    The power supply restoration is sequel to the total grid collapse, which occurred at 12.35am, this morning, causing outage nationwide, after over 421 days of consistent grid stability.

    In the course of the grid restoration, the process initially suffered a setback; this does not amount to another collapse. In the course of any grid restoration process, challenges may be encountered. This happened today while the grid restoration was in progress, but it was promptly addressed.

    It would be recalled that the last total system collapse recorded was on 20th July 2022, from then to the 13th of September, 2023, ( 421 days), the system had been stable in spite of the challenges posed by zero spinning reserve and lack of adequate System Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) essential to a strong and stable grid, among others.

    TCN had been able to maintain 421 days of grid stability because it developed and deployed in- house stop gap measures and tools that it has continued to use to manage the nations grid, ensuring its stability.

    Meanwhile, the collapse which occurred after a fire incident on Kanji/Jebba 330kV line 2 is being investigated, with the view to forestalling future occurrence and invariably further strengthen the grid.

    The incident notwithstanding, TCN is determined to continue to do its best to ensure grid stability.

  • Respite as TCN restores national grid after partial collapse

    Respite as TCN restores national grid after partial collapse

    The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) says it has restored the national grid after it’s partial collapse on Monday.

    Mrs Ndidi Mbah, TCN’s General Manager, Public Affairs made this known in a statement in Abuja.

    Mbah said that the national grid experienced partial system disturbance at about 10.51am, as result of sudden drop in system frequency, which created system instability.

    She said that the restoration of the affected grid commenced immediately at 11.55am with Osogbo/Ihovbor, followed by Jebba/Osogbo, Kainji/Jebba, Benin/Onitsha, Shiroro/Kaduna, Shiroro/Katampe and Alaoji/Ikot-Ekpene.

    Others are Lokoja/Gwagwalada, Odukpani/Ikot Ekpene, Benin/Omotosho, Oke-Aro/Ikeja west, Egbin/Oke-Aro and Kaduna/Kano.

    She said the grid restoration has almost been completed, adding that the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) regrets any inconveniences caused.

    Mbah said NESI appreciated the understanding of electricity customers within and outside the country.

    According to her, NESI is committed to leveraging the concerted interventions instituted so far to enhance power supply reliability so that the issue of system disturbance will soon become outdated.

    She said the National Control Centre would launch full-scale investigation “to establish and ascertain the cause of the partial disturbance as this unwholesome event has resulted in aggregated generation loss.”

  • Calabar entrepreneurs lament setback as power outage enters day 7

    Calabar entrepreneurs lament setback as power outage enters day 7

    Businesses in Calabar have continued to suffer intense pressure and setbacks following a power outage in the city for seven days.

     

    It was gathered that the situation was due to a fire that occurred on Sept 3 at the 13233 KV Substation in Adiabo Calabar.

     

    General Manager Public Affairs, Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, Ms Ndidi Mbah, had on September 4 issued a statement assuring residents of the city of the company s ongoing effort to restore power.

     

    The statement stated that TCN engineers were replacing the affected equipment to ensure the restoration of power to the city by September 5.

     

    TheNewGuru.com reports that till September 9 the city was still in darkness with no hope in sight.

     

    According to a bank official, who pleaded anonymity, “the bank and others had shortened the operation period due to poor power supply and the high cost of diesel. A lot of people may criticize banks but you need to know what they go through daily to ensure service provision.

     

    “They run virtually on diesel and do you know how much a litre of diesel costs today, not to talk of other operational expenses? Poor power supply has made doing business difficult in this city.”

     

    Similarly, Madam Affiong Okon, a cold room operator, said her business was declining because power was needed to ensure that all the items in the cold room remained fresh.

     

    “This is painful because few months ago there was no power in the whole of Calabar for a long time due to one problem or the other. I am still imagining how I survived it. Today, another one has started.

     

    “To make matters worse, they are going round to share bills as we speak, even though there is no light in the whole of Calabar. Are these people not telling us to lose our minds and become violent one day,” she said angrily.

     

    Calabar and its environs had suffered total blackout between April 8 and May 16.

     

    TheNewsGuru.com gathered that it was due to vandalism of a tower in Itu that evacuated power from Ikot Ekpene Power Plant to the Adiabo plant in Calabar.