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Tag: TCN

  • Reps member reveals why National Grid collapse reoccurs

    Reps member reveals why National Grid collapse reoccurs

    Rep. Magaji Da’u, the Chairman of the House Committee on Power, has blamed reoccurring National Grid collapse on obsolete infrastructure inherited by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).

    Da’u, who represents Birnin Kudu/Buji Federal Constituency of Jigawa, said this when he fielded reporters’ questions after a reception in his honour on the completion of his PhD programme in Birninkudu on Sunday.

    “I’m not trying to defend TCN, but they’ve inherited old infrastructure interns of whatever. They don’t even have a scanner in this country to monitor what happens.

    “You see, up to last month, they could not even access their network in Shiroro because of banditry,” Da’u said.

    He said that the House of Representatives plans to hold a public hearing on Oct. 22 to seek stakeholders’ view on the issue.

    He expressed opposition to calls for the privatisation of the TCN.

    “I’m against privatisation for obvious reasons, we’ve privatised DisCos and you see what happened, we have to take them back,” he said.

    About 4,000 people were at the reception to welcome back the lawmaker upon successful completion of his PhD programme in Public Administration from University of Scotland.

    He expressed optimism that the APC would win the 2023 general election at all levels in the state.

    “My people came to celebrate with me on the completion of my PhD programme in Public Administration from the University of Scotland.

    “As you can see, over 4,000 people came to celebrate with me. So it is not about how much you’re able to do, but how able you’ve been to meet and connect with the people to make them feel relevant and make them realise that they are important.

    “As far as we are concerned, we feel that we have done our best to ensure that APC wins the election in Jigawa comes 2023.

    “I’m also confident that I will be reelected in 2023 because in this place alone, there are over 4,000 of my constituents from the two local government areas.

    “So I’ve told them that if anyone of them can bring five people (voters), that’s 200,00 votes to win the election,” Da’u said.

  • FG insists no plan to privatize Transmission Coy of Nigeria

    FG insists no plan to privatize Transmission Coy of Nigeria

    The Minister of Power, Mr Abubakar Aliyu says there is no plan to privatise the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).

    Aliyu urged members of the public to disregard statements on the issue.

    This is contained in a statement issued by Malam Isa Sanusi, the Special Assistant (Media) to the minister in Abuja on Wednesday.

    According to the minister,  the Federal Government has no plan to sell or privatise TCN and no one in the government has made a statement of an intent to sell the company.

    He said that TCN was a centrepiece in the Federal Government’s efforts to rejuvenate the power sector.

    Aliyu said that the ministry of power was working with key stakeholders to evaluate, assess and upgrade the company to make it more efficient and transparent.

    ”As part of the repositioning of TCN, job opportunities are being created, as with the recently concluded ramp up of employment, contrary to claims that there is a plan for mass disengagement of staff at the company.

    ”The organisation has also been carrying out sustained capacity building by training and retraining of staff across all cadre for efficiency and service delivery.

    ”Transmission is a vital segment of the electricity value chain that constantly needs significant investment,” he said.

    According to him, the government of Nigeria maintains the transmission segment of the power value chain even when other segments have been privatised.

    He said that currently, the Federal Government was investing and supporting efforts to make TCN a world-class transmission service provider.

    Aliyu said that the Federal Government under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari was focused on upgrading, stabilising and modernising Nigeria’s power industry.

    He said that these innovations were being done through various interventions, including the Nigeria-Siemens partnership under the Presidential Power Initiative (PPI).

  • 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.”

  • BREAKING: Nigeria plunged into darkness as national grid collapses again

    BREAKING: Nigeria plunged into darkness as national grid collapses again

    Nigeria has been plunged into darkness as the national grid, managed by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), has collapsed once again.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that the Abuja Electricity Distribution (AEDC) and the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company PLC (EEDC) have confirmed the collapse of the national grid.

    Both AEDC and EEDC confirmed the collapse of the national grid in separate statements on Monday, disclosing that the national grid collapsed at about 10:55 am.

    AEDC’s statement reads: “Dear esteemed customer, please be informed that the current power outage is due to a system failure from the National Grid.

    “The system collapsed at about 10:55am Today, 26th September 2022, causing the outage currently being experienced.

    “We appeal for your understanding as all stakeholders are working hard to restore normal supply. Thank you”.

    The statement by EEDC reads: “The Enugu Electricity Distribution Company PLC (EEDC) wishes to inform her esteemed customers of a system collapse which occurred  at 10:51am today, 26th September,2022.

    “This has resulted to the loss of supply currently being experienced across the network. Due to this development, all our interface TCN stations are out of supply, and we are unable to provide service to our customers in Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo States.

    “We are on standby awaiting detailed information of the collapse and restoration of supply from the National Control Centre (NCC), Osogbo. Thank you”.

  • 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.

  • TCN deploys new technology to improve national grid

    TCN deploys new technology to improve national grid

    The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has deployed a high technology scheme as a stop-gap solution called Internet of Thing (IoT) and Virtual Private Network (VPN) to improve the national grid.

    Malam Yusuf Bako, Lead, Advocacy Team, Nigerian Power Consumers Forum, in a statement on Thursday , in Abuja said that TCN made this known in a forum with the group.

    Bako said that the technology was for real time grid operations and management to National Control Centre (NCC) in Osogbo, Osun.

    According to him, the technology will improve real-time operations of the national grid, pending the deployment of a long-term network automation system.

    He quoted the Managing Director of TCN, Mr Sule Abdulaziz, as describing the feat as a quantum leap.

    Abdulaziz said that this was coming at a time when the Minister of Power, M Abubakar Aliyu, has tasked agencies on innovative ways to improve electricity supply to Nigerians.

    “Thanks to President Muhammadu Buhari and the Minister of Power that the Nigerian power sector is steadily receiving historic attention with a quantum of investments that would redefine the sector for the best.

    “We have gone far with the procurement of new Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA)/Energy Management System (EMS)schemes but we felt as a responsible company that are waiting for the new SCADA, we can deploy a stop-gap technology.

    ”Which we have understudied in other countries to be very efficient in boosting real-time electricity grid monitoring,” he said.

    The TCN boss said that with the improved collaboration of other players in the electricity value chain, the company had been able to reduce cases of system collapse.

    He said that this was done through real time monitoring of operations at the various power transmission substations nationwide, and live interaction with operators at the power plants and Distribution Companies injection substations.

    Abdulaziz said that TCN was building two new National Control Centres in Abuja and Osogbo.

    He said that control centres would further improve the robustness of the Nigerian electricity grid.

    According to him, the National Control Centre and other technology systems will improve the stability of the national grid.

    ”The government is doing a lot to improve the power sector and that is why we always encourage Nigerians to support us by helping to guard critical national infrastructure.

    “We believe that as more of the investments and our transmission expansion projects materialise, Nigerians will experience more improved electricity supply.

    “This is the goal of TCN and I strongly believe that we are not resting on our oars to deliver on this mandate.

    “This preparation is coming at a time when Nigerian power operators are gearing up to take part in electricity export as soon as the Regional Electricity Market (REM) of the West African Power Pool (WAPP) is launched,” he said.

    Abdulaziz, who is also the Chairman, Executive Board of WAPP, said Nigeria, through TCN, had been exporting electricity to Niger, Benin and Togo under a country-to-country arrangement.

    He said that the regional market would further enable GenCos to export power to more West African countries which will be evacuated by TCN transmission infrastructure.

    He said that through this exportation of power, the Federal Government could earn more foreign exchange from that for national development comment on the TCN’s remapping of its investments in the power sector.

    The General Manager, NCC, Balarabe Abdullahi, said that with the stop gap solution, TCN can now access some stations and substations that were not captured in the last SCADA World Bank Project of 2004 on real time.

    “Today, with TCN’s stop-gap solution the grid operators can monitor a wider part of the grid. This is making grid operations and management a lot easier, ” he said.

    Mr Micheal Okoh, Convener of the Nigerian Power Consumers Forum (NPCF), said only such critical power transmission grid investments, backed by a matching strength at the DisCos’ end can bring succor to power consumers.

    Okoh said in analysing the feat, said the stop-gap solution has been existing in some countries like Benin Republic, and that it was better than late for Nigeria.

    “This has been long overdue, because if the grid or system operator does not have comprehensive operational data of the entire power grid, it is difficult to manage the fast-growing system.

    “The existing inadequate SCADA System cannot provide adequate grid visibility and we know that the SCADA system is not yet ready.

    ” I commend the management of TCN led by Abdulaziz for this innovative move. It shows that the current crop of TCN managers is actually thinking well to improve services,” he said.

    Okoh also called on the DisCos and other actors in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) to take similar actions that have collective impacts on the national grid.

    According to him, what consumers need is adequate power supply and they will pay the right tariff.

    ”We also call on the DisCos to match this technology, so that faults can easily be cleared and service delivery optimised,”.

  • FLASH: Electricity workers restore power supply nationwide

    FLASH: Electricity workers restore power supply nationwide

    Electricity workers under the aegis of the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) have restored power supply nationwide after they shut down the national grid and went on strike on Wednesday.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that the electricity workers, in protest, shut down the national grid, throwing the nation into the darkness to press home their demands.

    The electricity workers embarked on the strike in protest against the directive by the board of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) that all Principal Managers in acting capacity going to Acting General Manager must appear for a promotion interview.

    The General Secretary of NUEE, Mr Joe Ajaero, had in a statement explained that the directive was in contravention of the workers’ conditions of service and career progression paths, and alleged that it was unilaterally done without the relevant stakeholders.

    Other issues raised include stigmatisation of staff from the office of the Head of Service of the Federation from working in other areas in the power sector, and non-payment of December 2019 entitlement of ex-PHCN staff.

    Following intervention by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, the electricity workers’ union agreed to call off the industrial strike action for two weeks and restore power supply across the country.

    The blackout which started at about 11:00 am on Wednesday lasted overnight till about 7:30 am on Thursday morning when the national grid came back on stream and power supply was restored.

  • We are set to restore the national grid – TCN’s GM, Public Affairs

    We are set to restore the national grid – TCN’s GM, Public Affairs

    After electricity workers in the country threw the nation into darkness on Wednesday, the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has expressed readiness to restore the national grid.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that the electricity workers under National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) embarked on the strike, but was quickly called off after intervention by the federal government.

    ALSO READ || BREAKING: Electricity workers suspend strike

    The General Manager, Public Affairs of TCN, Mrs Ndidi Mbah confirmed the shut down of the national grid in Abuja and said the company was set to restore the grid as quickly as possible.

    Mrs Mbah disclosed that several 330kV transmission lines and 33 Kilo Volt (kV) feeder-lines across the power system network were switched off by the electricity workers.

    ”This resulted in generation-load imbalance and multiple voltage escalations at critical stations and substations,” Mbah stated.

    She said that this was coming weeks after the company had come out of  hectic grid management regime, occasioned by paucity of generation that lingered for a couple of months.

    ”Coupled with the stream of interventions by the Ministry of Power and other stakeholders in the value chain, grid generation (at peak) had reached 4,830.69 Megawatts (MW) as at Tuesday,” she said.

    The spokesperson confirmed that the Ministries of Power and Labour & Employment held a meeting with the electricity workers in order to resolve the issues.

    Mbah said that enduring mechanisms are being instituted to avert a situation of this kind going forward.

    Earlier, the General Secretary of NUEE, Mr Joe Ajaero, had in a statement said the strike was in protest against the directive by the TCN board that all Principal Managers in acting capacity going to Acting General Manager must appear for a promotion interview.

    Ajaero said the directive was in contravention of the workers’ conditions of service and career progression paths, and alleged that it was unilaterally done without the relevant stakeholders.

    Other issues raised include stigmatisation of staff from the office of the Head of Service of the Federation from working in other areas in the power sector, and non-payment of December 2019 entitlement of ex-PHCN staff.

  • BREAKING: Electricity workers suspend strike

    BREAKING: Electricity workers suspend strike

    Electricity workers under the aegis of the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) have suspended their industrial strike action.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that the electricity workers under NUEE embarked on the strike on Wednesday, shutting down the national grid to press home their demands.

    The federal government immediately summoned an emergency meeting with the electricity workers after they shut down the national grid, throwing the nation into darkness.

    It was gathered that the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige succeeded in reaching a truce with the electricity workers for them to suspend the strike.

    TNG reports that the electricity workers embarked on the strike in protest against the directive by the board of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) that all Principal Managers in acting capacity going to Acting General Manager must appear for a promotion interview.

    The General Secretary of NUEE, Mr Joe Ajaero, had in a statement explained that the directive was in contravention of the workers’ conditions of service and career progression paths, and alleged that it was unilaterally done without the relevant stakeholders.

    Other issues raised include stigmatisation of staff from the office of the Head of Service of the Federation from working in other areas in the power sector, and non-payment of December 2019 entitlement of ex-PHCN staff.

    Following deliberations at the meeting that lasted for three hours with the Minister of Labour and Employment, the electricity workers union agreed to suspend the strike for two weeks.

    ALSO READ || We are set to restore the national grid – TCN’s GM, Public Affairs

    The workers expressed optimism that the government will listen to the voice of reasoning and prioritise their welfare and wellbeing.

  • Blackout in Lagos as electricity workers begin strike

    Blackout in Lagos as electricity workers begin strike

    There was blackout across Lagos State on Wednesday following the nationwide strike by electricity workers under the aegis of the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE).

    Ikeja Electric Plc and Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) confirmed the development in separate public notices to their customers.

    The DisCos said the picketing of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) by the union members had plunged customers under their networks into darkness.

    “Due to the ongoing nationwide picketing of Transmission Stations by the NUEE, we are currently experiencing disruption of power supply as most stations within our network have been shut down.

    “Kindly bear with us as we await amicable resolution by the relevant stakeholders.

    “Thank you for your usual understanding and cooperation,” Ikeja Electric said.

    Similarly, EKEDC said the grounding of activities at the TCN controlled power stations had led to disruption of electricity supply to customers across the country.

    “In the meantime, we would like to reassure our esteemed customers that we are currently working with the relevant regulatory authorities and the parties involved to reach an amicable resolution.

    “Thank you for your understanding”, the DisCo said.

    NUEE in a notice signed by its General Secretary, Mr. Joe Ajaero, had directed its members to stop work effective Aug. 17.

    The union had earlier issued a 14-day ultimatum to the Chief Executive Officer of TCN on May 18, threatening to down tools if its complaints were not resolved.

    “You are hereby enjoined to mobilise immediately for serious picketing of TCN Headquarters and Stations nationwide over the directive by the TCN Board that all PMs in acting capacity going to AGM must appear for a promotion interview,” the letter said.

    “This directive is in contravention of our Conditions of Service and Career Progression Paths and was unilaterally done without the relevant Stakeholders”, the union said.

    The union also decried the failure of the authorities to pay the entitlement of former staff of the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) in December 2019.