The national power grid has suffered another collapse, according to the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).
“The national grid experienced a partial disturbance at about 1;52 pm today, 5th November 2024.
“This followed a series of lines and generators trippings that caused instability of the grid and, consequently, the partial disturbance of the system,” the company said.
“The data from the National Control Centre (NCC) revealed that a part of the grid was not affected by the bulk power disruption.
“TCN engineers are already working to quickly restore bulk power supply to the states affected by the partial disturbance. Presently, bulk power supply has been restored to Abuja, at 2.49pm, and we are gradually restoring to other parts of the country.
“We sincerely apologize for every inconvenience this may cause our electricity customers.”
On February 4, Nigeria experienced its first blackout of 2024 when the national grid collapsed at approximately 11:51 AM. The TCN-managed grid saw its capacity plummet from 2,407 megawatts to just 31MW by noon, and it completely shut down by 1 PM.
Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, last month said that grid collapses are almost inevitable in Nigeria given the deplorable state of the country’s power infrastructure.
The minister also said there is a need to have power grids in different regions or states to put an end to incessant grid collapses.
According to him, having multiple power grids in each region and state would ensure stability. He noted that the decentralisation of the power sector would help the plan to build grids in each region, saying this was made possible by the Electricity Act signed by President Bola Tinubu in 2023.
The latest development occurred after the House of Representatives directed its Committee on Power to investigate the frequent national grid collapses and report back to it.