The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has announced that there will be power outages in parts of Abuja this weekend as the company is going to carry out maintenance exercises on two transformers.
The planned annual preventive maintenance exercise is to be conducted on two transformers at the Apo 132/33 Kilovolt (kV) transmission substation in Abuja.
According to a statement issued on Saturday by TCN’s General Manager, Public Affairs, Mrs. Ndidi Mbah, the maintenance will take place on Saturday and Sunday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on each day.
“TCN wishes to inform the public that its maintenance crew will conduct annual preventive maintenance on the 2×100 Megavolt Ampere (MVA), TR3 & TR4 transformers at the Apo 132/33kV Transmission Substation in Abuja,” the statement read.
The company listed the following areas in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to experience temporary power outages:
For seven hours on Saturday:
- The National Hospital G2, injection station, Garki, Area 1.
- Asokoro.
On Sunday:
- APO Legislative Quarters,
- APO Resettlement, Gudu
- APO Mechanic, and surrounding communities.
Mbah explained that the interruptions are necessary, as the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) will be unable to receive bulk power from the transformers during the maintenance period.
She assured residents that the electricity supply would be restored immediately after the maintenance was completed and apologized for the inconvenience.
“Power supply will be restored to the affected areas upon completion of the maintenance exercise,” Mbah assured.
TCN urged customers in the affected areas to bear with the temporary disruption, emphasizing that the maintenance is aimed at ensuring improved power supply reliability.
Recent power disruptions in Abuja
Last month, Nairametrics reported that the TCN restored full bulk power to its 132/33kV Apo transmission Substation, after relocating eight 132kV and 33kV towers along the Kukwaba/Apo 132kV line.
- The relocation was reportedly necessitated by the ongoing road dualization project by the Federal Capital Development Agency (FCDA) along the Apo axis.
- Before the restoration of full bulk power, Abuja residents along the affected transmission lines experience a planned 15-day power outage, from Monday, January 6 to 20, 2025.
- These affected zones at the time included Kubwa, Karu, Maraba, Nyanya, Masaka, Keffi, Kukwaba, and the Apo Mechanic area. Additionally, parts of Lugbe, Trademore Estate, Pyakasa, Sabon Lugbe, Chika, and the Alaita axis.
- Residents and the Nigeria Consumer Protection Network condemned the disconnection, but the TCN went ahead with it anyway.
Last December, some parts of Abuja also experienced power outages as the TCN undertook technical servicing on a 60MVA power transformer and its associated switch gears at the Gwagwalada 330/132/33kV Transmission Substation.