TCN Restores National Power Grid With Many Cities and Towns Still Without Power

The Transmission Company of Nigeria says it has successfully restored the national power grid following its collapse at 4:28 pm on Thursday.

The company in a statement on Friday signed by Ndidi Mbah, General Manager, Public Affairs said the grid attained full recovery by 10 pm on the same day.

She said, “We remain optimistic that power supply will be restored to optimal normalcy soon, as the grid restoration continues. We will keep you updated.”

According to her, a report from the National Control Centre in Osogbo had it that the system disturbance was triggered by a significant reduction in generation capacity, primarily due to gas constraints.

This reduction, she stated led to a rapid decline in system frequency, creating “a sudden imbalance in the grid.”

“The imbalance in grid stability was exacerbated by the sudden tripping of Egbin generation Turbine 3, resulting in an additional loss of 167MW load and the subsequent collapse of the grid.

“The grid has, however, since been recovered and is stable, and is currently transmitting all the generated power to distribution load centres nationwide.

“TCN emphasises its unwavering commitment to addressing grid challenges and actively working to mitigate disruptions. In instances where challenges extend beyond TCN’s control, the company collaborates with other stakeholders in the power sector value chain to minimize the impact and swiftly restore the grid to normal operation”.

On Thursday major cities, including Lagos and Abuja, were thrown into darkness following the collapse of the national grid.

Nigeria’s national power grid collapsed 46 times from 2017 to 2023, the International Energy Agency said in a report.

According to the report, Nigerians endured more nationwide blackouts in 2023, especially on September 14, when the grid collapsed due to a fire on a major transmission line.

The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has assured Nigerians that current power problems would be over in the next three to six months.

He stated that gas suppliers, who have refused to supply gas to power-generating companies due to unpaid debts, would start receiving payments from April.