The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has announced that a sudden spike in frequency, rising from 50.33Hz to 51.44Hz, led to a disruption in the national grid at approximately 11:29 a.m. on Thursday morning.
According to TCN in an official statement, the frequency increase stemmed from technical issues at one of its substations, which was shut down to prevent further complications.
“The frequency spike was caused by issues encountered at one of our substations, which had to be shut down to prevent further complications,” TCN stated.
According to the statement, immediate recovery efforts were initiated, allowing for partial restoration of the Abuja axis within 28 minutes. The company disclosed that “Recovery is still ongoing,” indicating that additional work is underway to stabilize the remaining affected areas.
Ongoing repairs and system upgrades
In an effort to address these ongoing issues, the TCN revealed that significant repair work is already being conducted on critical transmission lines and substations.
These include:
- Repair work is underway on the Shiroro–Mando 330kV Transmission Line to improve resilience along this route
- Major upgrades at the Jebba Transmission Substation
- Restoration of the second Ugwuaji–Apir 330kV Transmission Line
Addressing system weaknesses
Following an investigative report on previous grid collapses, TCN is also implementing targeted improvements to address systemic weaknesses noting that both technical upgrades and strategic interventions are being applied based on the committee’s recommendations.
“Following the submission of the investigative report on the causes of previous grid collapses, we have begun addressing the identified weaknesses in the transmission system,” TCN stated
The TCN acknowledged that despite ongoing improvements, some instability is likely to persist in the near term.
“It is important to note that while these repairs and improvements are underway, some degree of instability in the system is likely to persist until all major works are completed,” they noted.
TCN appealed for public understanding, recognizing the disruptions’ impact on daily life and economic activities.
“We acknowledge the impact of these disruptions and ask for the understanding and patience of the public during this challenging period,” the statement read.
What you should know
Nairametrics reported that the federal government, through the National Orientation Agency (NOA), has attributed the frequent collapse of the national grid which results in nationwide blackouts to the inability of electricity distribution companies (DisCos) to take power generated.
The NOA explained that while the country has the capacity to generate approximately 13,000 MW of electricity and transmit up to 8,000 MW, the limited infrastructure of DisCos results in system failures.
“On the generation side, with the addition of the 700MW Zungeru hydroelectric plant which came on stream in the second quarter of the year, Nigeria’s national grid now has an installed power generation capacity of about 13,610MW.
“Despite the 13,610MW generation capacity and the over 8,000MW transmission capacity, the total active distribution capacity of the 11 Discos in Nigeria is still hovering around 4,000MW,” they stated.
