Issue No.

32
December 2021

Minister of Power,
Ag. MD/CEO TCN,
Inspect Power Projects
in Katsina State

WAPP to Complete North

Core Transmission Line

Happy New Year Linking Nigeria and 3

Countries by 2023

December 2021

From all of us at
TRANSMISSION COMPANY OF NIGERIA
 EDITIONS OF
TCN TRANSMISSION NEWS
PUBLISHED IN 2021

2021
December

32
Issue No.

of Power,
Minister ,
CEO TCN ects
Ag. MD/
Power Proj
Inspect State
in Katsina
North
Complete
WAPP to smission Line
Core Tran ria and 3
Nige
Linking by 2023
Countries
 CONTENTS
18
08 Minister of Power, TCN MD,
Inspect Three Transmission
Substation Projects and
Windmill Generating Plant
12 Chairman House Committee
on Power, TCN Management
Inspect 2x40MVA 132/33kV
Walalambe Substation
14 WAPP to Complete North Core
Transmission Line Linking
Nigeria and 3 Countries By 2023.
18 House Committee on Power
Commends TCN, Promises
Increased Funding
PAGE 3
December 2021 ISSUE 32
08
12
20 We are Certain That The
Grid Will Be More Reliable
With SCADA Applications
in Place
22 Engr. Dr. Abdulaziz Tasks
Contractors on Speedy
Completion of Rimin Zakara
Substation
26 FG Set to Commission
10MW Katsina Wind Farm
-Minister
38 AfDB Engages TCN on
Nigeria Transmission
Expansion Project

RECAP ON THE YEAR 2021
I
t is a fact that time flies, especially when one is positively
engaged. So just like yesterday, January 2021 has given way
to December 2021, and December is already beckoning on
January 2022. In TCN, our scorecard for the year 2021 posts
exceptional results. The Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz-led Management
consolidated its visionary leadership and made a remarkable
impression implementing strategic projects and programs that
have succeeded to repositioning TCN to attain its core mandate of
delivering bulk electricity to Nigerians in the most reliable, stable,
efficient, and safe manner.
Leveraging on its flagship strategy, the Nigerian Electricity Grid
Maintenance Rehabilitation and Expansion Program (NEGMERP),
TCN has performed remarkably in providing standard transmission
service, grid expansion, efficient system operations, and
innovations that have all contributed to ensuring grid balance and
stability. We are not yet where we plan to be, but we are mindful
that with the continued implementation of strategic initiatives of
Management and cooperation of staff, TCN will get there in no
distant future. Milestones achieved in the course of the year are a
pointer to the direction that we are headed.
Aside from the fact that the grid has been stable during the year
with only two total system disturbances and a record Grid
recovery time of 45 minutes, it has also successfully transmitted
successive peak generation, a commendable improvement from
previous years. Project execution and routine maintenance were
accorded priority attention with the delivery and connection of
several transformers to the national grid. New substations and
lines projects are ongoing, while reconductored transmission lines
in Kaduna, Jos, Lagos, and others were completed and reconnected
to the grid.
Other significant milestones that TCN achieved during the year
include the reactivation of some moribund Supervisory Control
and Data Acquisition (SCADA) equipment; restoration of Remote
Terminal Units (RTUs); use of Virtual Private Network through
which critical lines in the network were captured using Internet of
Things (IoT). The innovation is a stop-gap measure by TCN
PAGE 4
December 2021/Issue 32
engineers to improve grid visibility, ensure more effective
monitoring and supervision of the system, and cannot replace the
need for a complete SCADA system which would engender a very
reliable grid.
These initiatives and works have all contributed considerably to
improving grid frequency and voltage control and also helped in
reducing damage to substations equipment while improving
Transmission Loss Factor (TLF) in the network. The Nigerian
Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) recently moved the
transmission loss factor from 8.05% to 7.50% due to improved
grid capacity, stability, and efficiency.
Notwithstanding the gains recorded in 2021, TCN has had to
contend with several challenges, including vandalism of
installations, especially in the North-East axis; excavation of sand
near the transmission towers has continued to threaten the
foundation of some of our towers. The menace is particularly
rampant in Abuja, Osogbo, and Enugu states.
As the year was about to wind down, the December 24 inferno
from a vandalized pipeline in Lagos brought down five
transmission towers prompting the Ag. MD/CEO to undertake an
on-the-spot inspection of the site of the collapsed towers the
same day and ordered the immediate reconstruction of the
affected transmission towers and lines. Presently, the collapsed
transmission towers have been dismantled and cleared with
contractors mobilizing to the site, materials to commence
reconstruction.
For TCN, even though 2021 is ending on a good note, we will not
rest on our oars, knowing that there are challenges ahead and a lot
more to accomplish in our quest to rebrand TCN and move it to the
next level. We are confident that we can and we will.
We wish you all a happy and fulfilling 2022.
Ndidi Mbah
Editor
MD/CEO’S DESK December 2021/Issue 32

From The
Desk of the Ag. MD/CEO

Engr. Dr. S.A. Abdulaziz

s we enter another operational year in With the purposeful pursuit of our flagship strategy – the

A
2022, we look back at 2021 with a Nigerian Electricity Grid Maintenance, Expansion and
measure of satisfaction at the Rehabilitation Program (NEGMERP) by the present
performance of our Company during Management, and with the support of a committed workforce
the year. Our as well as defined policy
scorecard posts direction of the Federal
good results even in Ministry of Power, TCN is
the face of daunting
Other milestone achievements gradually re-writing its history
challenges that range from the difficult include the creation of Kano both as a national and regional
working conditions foisted on us by the Region, bringing to ten (10), transmission utility with the
Covid 19 pandemic to severe budgetary TCN's regional operations determination of achieving its
constraints, insecurity, vandalism and other centers in the country. To target.
criminal activities against our facilities, Right further enhance operational
of Way issues among others. Working In the course of the year,
efficiency,
together, we have been able to achieve strategic management
significant milestones never before decisions and staff diligence
witnessed in the history of TCN. have paid off, enabling the

PAGE 6
MD/CEO’S DESK
completion of several abandoned projects, prompt
maintenance, upgrade and repair/restoration of vandalized
transmission lines and facilities, installation of new
transformers and substations, re-calibration and
reconfiguration of transmission lines, transformer protection
schemes and our operators' ingenuity in managing the grid
without adequate SCADA/EMS applications. We take pride in
the fact that these effectively reduced the frequency of
system disturbance and collapse, resulting in an all-time
national peak generation of 5,801.60MW, which was
successfully transmitted on 1st March 2021. This is quite
commendable.
Other milestone achievements
include the creation of Kano Region,
bringing to ten (10) TCN's regional
operations centers in the country. To
further enhance operational
efficiency, we are building over
We have equally
thirty-two office complexes provided work tools
nationwide, including Regional, Sub- and safety
regional offices and Work Centers.
While they are at various stages of
equipment, spare
completion, the new Port Harcourt parts, test equipment,
Regional Office in Rivers State has among others, to
been completed and commissioned.
ensure a more
Also, the initiative of Management conducive working
and staff in developing in-house, environment and
Network Automation System as a
stop gap measure in our drive efficiency.
towards the actualization of
adequate and reliable SCADA/EMS
/Telecoms facility is a major
achievement. We have equally
provided work tools and safety equipment, spare parts, test
equipment, among others, to ensure a more conducive
working environment and efficiency.
We held our first Management Retreat this year to re-
strategize. The retreat dwelt on further increasing efficiency,
and rebranding of the company among others. To sustain
capacity building, we embarked on training and retraining of
all cadres of staff; the most significant being the collaboration
between TCN and the World Bank in which we trained 708
engineers.
Management also gave sustained attention to human
resources issues. Accordingly, we sensitized all staff on the
PAGE 7
December 2021/Issue 32
reviewed 2020 Conditions of Service and Career
Progression Paths. 2021 promotion exercise was also
conducted even as we recorded unprecedented
improvement in industrial harmony with the two in-house
labour unions maintaining healthy relations throughout the
year.
With the commitment of the new Minister of Power, Engr
Abubakar D. Aliyu FNSE, TCN has been able to play its part in
fostering positive collaboration among power sector
stakeholders as we work towards the common goal of
providing steady electricity supply to Nigerians.
In the international arena, TCN has
continued to hold her leadership
position in the West African Power
Pool (WAPP) as the Chairman of
WAPP Executive Board. Progress is
being made on the implementation of
transmission interconnection
projects that will impact positively on
the sub-region.
Our achievements were
accomplished notwithstanding
challenges. To address these
challenges, we have continued to
engage the appropriate stakeholders
and authorities with a view to
minimizing their impact on our
operations nationwide. Our
community engagement efforts and
collaborations with security agencies
and state governments are gradually
producing positive results.
As we work towards our vision, we cannot afford to rest on
our oars. We must strive for higher accomplishments in NESI.
We must continue to leverage on team spirit and corporate
commitment in our determination to further increase grid
capacity, stability and efficiency as well as enhance
interconnectivity in the West African sub-region. In 2022
and beyond, we will intensify our efforts on repositioning
TCN as a world-class Transmission Service Provider and
System Operator in line with our Vision, Mission, and Core
Values by working hard to accomplish the next stage in our
plans in revamping TCN. Together, we can achieve our vision
of becoming one of the leading electricity transmission
companies in the world.
PROJECT INSPECTION
Minister of Power, TCN MD, Inspect Three
Transmission Substation Projects and Windmill
Generating Plant in Katsina State
Minister of Power, Engr. Aliyu and the Ag. MD/CEO of TCN, Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz during the inspection
T
he Minister of Power, Engr. Aliyu and the Ag.
MD/CEO of TCN, Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz
have inspected on-going TCN substations
and the Lambar Rimi Windmill Project in
Katsina State. The project inspection which
took place on the eve of 2022, was to
ascertain the level of completion of the projects and their
capacity to increase bulk power delivery in Katsina and
environs, as well as to enable the Ministry intervene
appropriately to facilitate their completion.
330kV Katsina Substation
Speaking with journalists after inspection of the Katsina
330kV Substation project, Engr. Aliyu noted that the power
sector in
PAGE 8
December 2021/Issue 32
By Ndidi Mbah
Nigeria attained a commendable level of stability in 2021,
with only two system collapses throughout the year which
was a major milestone achievement when compared to
earlier years where system collapses several times within a
year.
According to him, the Federal Government is working to
further enhance system stability with the Siemens Project
which will intervene in transmission and distribution
capacities in the first and second phase to bring them to
7,000MW and 11,000MW respectively, while the third
phase intervention will include generation to raise the
combined operational capacity of the sector to 25,000MW.
This, the Minister noted, was part of efforts by the
Government to enhance power-related businesses and
economic activities in the country.
PROJECT INSPECTION
Commenting on the progress of work at the site, the Ag.
MD/CEO TCN, Engr. Dr. Abdulaziz said that the Katsina
Substation was initially awarded years ago but was
abandoned and resuscitated last year, because of the
importance and strategic location of the substation in that
axis. He explained that work was on-going on the Switchyard
with two (2no) 60MVA, 132/33kV power transformers
already on plinth. TCN, he noted was awaiting delivery of two
(2) 150MVA, 330/132/33kV power transformers for the
330kV part of the substation, work is almost complete on the
station’s administrative block, while the execution of the
330kV transmission line from Rimin Zakara to the substation
has reached Zakara town and advancing.
The Katsina Substation was initially conceived as a Work
Centre in the year 2020, but was upgraded to the status of a
substation in 2021 by the present Management of TCN. When
completed, the Substation will supply bulk power to six 132kV
substations; three of which are already in existence, including
the Kankiya, Katsina, and Daura 132kV Substations. while
three are ongoing viz Dutsin-Ma, Kurfi, Malumfashi.
132kV Kankia Substation.
At the Kankia 2x60MVA 132/33kV Transmission Substation,
the Minster inspected materials stored at the substation yard
meant for the ongoing construction of the 330kV
transmission line from Katsina to Kano. Presently,
construction works on the line has progressed to Tsanyawa
Local Government in Kano State and ongoing. The Minister
while speaking with the contractors, cautioned that the
Government would not tolerate further delay in the execution
of the transmission line and encouraged them to bring up any
challenge that requires intervention for quick action.
Construction sites of the new 330/132/33kV Transmission Substation in Katsina
PAGE 9
December 2021/Issue 32
Lambar Rimi 10MW Windmill
During the visit to the Lambar Windmill Substation Project, in
Charanchi Local Government Area of the State, the Minister
explained that a number of procurements were made by the
Ministry of Power, under the Presidential Power Initiative
targeted at assisting Nigeria to systematically raise its
electricity capacity to 25,000MW
Awarded in June, 2009, by the Ministry of Power, the Lambar
Windmill project was designed to generate 10MW of
electricity for Katsina State, with 12 months time line for
completion, but for a security-related incident which
occurred in 2012, at the peak of execution that delayed the
work for a protracted time.
At the Wind Farm site however, it was observed that of the
Thirty-Seven (37) wind turbines installed, six (6) had been
vandalized. Engr. Aliyu confirmed that the Ministry was
working towards fixing the vandalized towers before the
planned commissioning of the wind farm. Each of the turbines
has the capacity to generate 275Kilowatts.
Earlier, the Minister had inspected the Liyafa 33/11 Injection
Substation that directly evacuates energy generated by the
wind farm for onward distribution to electricity consumers in
Katsina State.
The official visit signaled the Minister’s determination to
ensure that power projects are given the attention they
require in 2022, to ensure that the government’s goal for the
power sector is actualized.
 Leadership is Life of
Sacrifice to set the pace
NERC
NERC REVIEWS TRANSMISSION
LOSS FACTOR
F
ollowing a remarkable
improvement in the
operations of Transmission
Service Provider (TSP), which
has decreased Transmission
Loss Factor (TLF) in the transmission
network, the Nigerian Electricity
Regulatory Commission (NERC), has
proposed the downward review of the
Transmission Loss Factor by 1% to a new
benchmark of 7.5% for the Transmission
Company of Nigerian (TCN) as against
the current 8.05% that applied in the
determination of transmission tariff,
since June 2012.
The Assistant General Manager Market
Competition and Rates, NERC, Mr. Friday
Sule, made this known during a
presentation on the Stakeholders'
Consultation for the Review of
Transmission Loss Factor for TCN,
chaired by the Commissioner, Legal
Licensing and Compliance, Mr. Dafe
Akpeneye, who represented the
Chairman of the Commission Mr. Sanusi
Garba, recently in Abuja.
He disclosed that the 7.5 per cent
benchmark is for the period of one year
with effect from January 1, 2022, with a
TLF reduction trajectory of .025%
percentage over the next five years, to
bring it to 6.25% in 2026. According to
him, reasons for the review was to
ensure that transmission tariff was
PAGE 11
determined in the most efficient manner
before it is passed on to electricity end-
user.
Mr. Sule opined that the consultation
with stakeholders in the power sector
was in line with Section 76, sub section 1
of the Act which specifically allows the
commission to regulate tariff for the
licensees of generation, transmission and
distribution.
“In doing so, the methodology
presupposes that the licensees should be
allowed to recover their operational
cost, make reasonable returns on their
investment and continue to improve
based on incentives that have been
given them” he said.
He further explained that prior to this
time, the commission had approved a
Multi Tariff Order (MTO) for TCN since
2012 with a benchmark of 8.05%
Transmission Loss Factor across the
transmission network; Actual
Transmission Loss Factor were 8.29% in
2016, 8.68% in 2017, 8.39% in 2018,
7.68% in 2019 and 7.29% in 2020,
according to the records the
Commission received recently from the
System Operator (SO).
He noted that the remarkable reduction
in TLF was the result of considerable
investment in the network by TCN. “This
improvement in operation calls for
December 2021/Issue 32
By Eric Ephraim Ene
consideration for benchmark in such a
way that the electricity users would
begin to gain benefits that accrue from
this improvement which should be
incentivized in a manner that will allow
the TSP to hold back those gains that it
has made until a new tariff/benchmark
will be set” he said.
He also stated that Transmission
(network) losses represent the portion
of electrical energy that is 'lost' in the
form of heat due to physical factors such
as electrical resistance in the
transmission network. These losses are
unavoidable as electricity flow from one
point to another but can be minimised
through efficiency improvement.
Transmission Loss Factor (TLF) reflects
the minimum electricity transmission
loss allowance along the transmission
network to be applied in the
determination of transmission tariffs. The
Transmission Loss Factor (TLF) serves
as a key performance indicator for
assessing the efficiency of the
transmission system
It would be recalled that NERC published
the consultation paper on the review of
Transmission Loss Factor of TCN on its
website and major newspapers on the
16th of November 2021, for comment,
objection from stakeholders before the
public presentation.
Upon completion of the consultation
process, the Commission's decision shall
be incorporated in the MYTO model and
accordingly reflected in the subsequent
Order.
“...proposed the downward review of
the Transmission Loss Factor by
1% to a new benchmark of 7.5%
for the Transmission Company of
Nigerian (TCN) as against the
current 8.05%...”
 PROJECT INSPECTION December 2021/Issue 32

Chairman House Committee on

Power, TCN Management, Inspect
2x40MVA, 132/33kV Walalambe Substation
By Grace Sambo-Jauro

R-L; Chairman, House Committee on Power, Honourable Magaji Da'u Aliyu, Honourable Nassir Ahmed Ali representing
Nasarawa Federal Constituency and Ag. MD/CEO, TCN Engr. Dr Sule Abdulaziz

T
he Chairman, House Committee
on Power, Honourable Magaji
Da'u Aliyu, alongside Honourable
Nassir Ahmed Ali representing
Nasarawa Federal Constituency and Ag.
MD/CEO, TCN Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz
have inspected the ongoing
construction work at 2x40MVA
132/33kV Transmission Substation in
Walalambe, Kano State, to ascertain the
progress of work in the Substation.
The Chairman expressed dissatisfaction
with the level of progress of work since
his last visit to the substation nine
months ago, and sought to know the
challenges that have delayed the timely
completion of the project.
He reiterated the importance of the
substation to Kano State as a whole
when completed and called for the
speedy completion of the project. Hon.
Aliyu pledged his support to assist TCN
in fast-tracking work on the substation,
which may include assisting TCN
engineers take over and complete the
project. He restated the support of
President Muhammadu Buhari's
administration towards completing
projects such as this across the country
and assured TCN of National
Assembly's support in such cases.
In his response, the Ag MD/CEO, TCN,
Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz, revealed that
work on the substation was stalled by
the contractor, and lack of funds, until
recently when TCN Management
reviewed the contract. He explained
that the new procurement process was
almost completed and that within a
fortnight, TCN would award the
completion of this substation to
another contractor. According to him,
“we have already done pre-
procurement, we have about 120
contractors that were pre-qualified;

PAGE 12
PROJECT INSPECTION
once the procurement process is
completed, we will re-award the
contract”, he said.
The MD/CEO said that the alternative for
TCN was to obtain approval for funds
from the Service Level Agreement (SLA),
which is an interface between the
Transmission Company and the DisCos,
especially as the substation has been
listed among the projects to be
addressed under SLA.
He then appealed to the law makers to
liaise with the distribution company
supplying the area to make provision for
new feeders as the area has become
densely populated. “This area is highly
built so getting the feeders out after the
completion of the project is another
challenge. At the time we acquired the
land in 2005, all these houses were not
built. The distribution company will also
Ongoing construction work at the site of the 2x40MVA ,132/33kV Transmission Substation in Walalambe, Kano State,
PAGE 13
December 2021/Issue 32
have to figure out how they are going to
radiate their feeders from this station'', he
said.
Speaking, Hon. Nassir Ahmed Ali, the Speaking, Hon. Nassir
Honourable member representing Ahmed Ali, the Honourable
Nasarawa Federal Constituency where member representing
the project is located, commended Engr. Nasarawa Federal
Abdulaziz and his team for their efforts on Constituency where the
the project, and noted that the speedy project is located,
completion of the project will not only commended Engr. Abdulaziz
improve power supply, but also boost and his team for their
socio-economic activities in the area.
efforts on the project, and
The completion of the 2X40MVA noted that the speedy
132/33kV transmission substation is completion of the project
expected to boost electricity supply to will not only improve
communities such as Walalambe, Hotoro
power supply, but also
and parts of Katsina and Jigawa States.
boost socio-economic
The site visit was on Monday 18th, activities in the area.
October 2021.
WAPP
Chairman WAPP Executive Board, Engr. Dr Sule Abdulaziz
WAPP to Complete North Core
Transmission Line Linking
Nigeria and 3 Countries by 2023.
T
he Chairman, Executive Board of
the West African Power Pool
(WAPP), Engr. Dr. Sule A.
Abdulaziz has reiterated the
commitment of the sub-regional body
towards completing the WAPP North
Core Project, which is a trans-national
transmission line project that will link
Nigeria to three ECOWAS countries,
namely Niger, Burkina Faso, and Benin.
PAGE 14
Engr. Dr. Abdulaziz, who is also the Ag.
Managing Director/CEO of
Transmission Company of Nigeria
(TCN), made this known at the 52nd
WAPP Executive Board Meeting which
took place as part of the 16th Session of
the WAPP General Assembly in
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso recently.
While highlighting key project
December 2021/Issue 32
By Ndidi Mbah
implementation updates, the WAPP
head stated that “the WAPP North Core
Project that seeks to interconnect
Nigeria, Niger, Burkina Faso, and Benin
was in the implementation phase with
the procurement process underway.
The project is expected to be
completed by 2023 and is part of
efforts of the WAPP to integrate the
power systems of West African
countries by delivering priority projects
WAPP December 2021/Issue 32

which would eventually interconnect all
fourteen countries in the mainland of
ECOWAS”.
He stated further that the North Core
Project was among key priority
projects undertaken by WAPP under its
strategic plan to interconnect the
countries of the sub-region. Other
projects undertaken under the scheme
include the construction of the 330kV
Volta (Ghana) - Lome 'C' (Togo) -
Sakété (Benin) interconnection line that
has been completed and would soon be
energized, as well as the WAPP Cote
d'Ivoire – Sierra Leone – Guinea (CSLG)
project which was to be commissioned
in no distant future.
He noted that WAPP had made giant
strides towards the effective
operationalization of the ECOWAS
Regional Electricity Market through
unrelenting efforts to harmonize the
Market Rules and agreement by market
participants on regulatory issues. This,
he opined, would ensure flexibility in the
power system and increase trading
opportunities for market participants,
among others.
The WAPP Chairman charged members
to sustain the determination and
momentum towards attaining the set
goals of WAPP, remarking that
notwithstanding the significant
achievements that the body has
recorded under the current leadership
of the Pool, more needed to be done
until the goal of the founding fathers
was achieved.
The Secretary-General of WAPP, Mr.
Siengui Appollinaire KI, urged members
to remain committed to the pursuit of
the objectives of WAPP. According to
him, despite the challenges, “we must at
all costs continue our journey towards
the ultimate goal of our institution,
which is the implementation of a
competitive regional electricity market.
We must redouble our efforts to this
end, the goal being more than ever
before within reach”.
He disclosed that new rotating
members of the Executive Council, who
would sit for the next two years, would
be nominated to replace the out-going
rotational members whose tenure had
elapsed. A new Vice-Chairman, he
added, would be elected to replace the
former vice Chairman, Mr. Hamidou
Traore, who had been re-designated.
Earlier, while welcoming participants to
the meeting, Mr. Baba Ahmed Coulibaly,
the Director-General of Sonabel, the
Burkinabe state-owned electricity
company which played host to the
meeting, called for more dedication,
stressing that “in our sub-region, the
stakes in the electricity sector are so
high that we must rigorously ensure
that decisions are implemented on
time”.
“... WAPP has
continued to make
giant strides towards
the effective
operationalization of
the ECOWAS Regional
Electricity Market by the
unrelenting efforts to
harmonize the Market
Rules and agreement by
market participants on
regulatory issues.”

Members of the WAPP Executive Board meeting

PAGE 15
 WAPP IN PICTURES December 2021/Issue 32

Meeting with WAPP Technical and Financial Partners

at Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

L-R, WAPP Chairman, Engr. Sule Abdulaziz, and Secretary General,

A section of participants at the meeting
Mr. Siengui Apollinaire KI

A section of participants at the meeting

Group photograph of Heads of Power Utilities and
WAPP Technical and Financial partners

Meeting with Donor Agencies at Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

L to R; The Chairman of the West African Power Pool (WAPP),

Engr. Dr. Sule A. Abdulaziz looks on as the MD of Mainstream Group photograph
Energy Solutions Ltd. (MESL), Engr. Lamu Audu signs the register
of Market Participants, officially making MESL a Market Participant
and “Seller” in the Regional Electricity Market.

PAGE 16
 WAPP IN PICTURES December 2021/Issue 32

16th Session Of The WAPP General Assembly

Left; WAPP Chairman and Ag. MD/CEO TCN, Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz, A section of participants at the meeting
presiding over the 16th session of WAPP General Assembly
meeting at Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

Cross section of participants at the meeting Group photograph after the WAPP General Assembly

Meeting with Donor Agencies at Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

WAPP Chairman and Ag. MD/CEO TCN, Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz, A section of participants at the meeting

PAGE 17
HOUSE COMMITTEE
House Committee on Power Commends
TCN, Promises Increased Funding
L-R; Chairman, House Committee on Power, Hon. Magaji Dau' Aliyu, and Ag. MD/CEO TCN, Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz
T
he House of Representatives
Committee on Power has
commended the Management of
Transmission Company of Nigeria
(TCN), for its commitment to ensuring
the transmission and maintenance of
the grid system despite inadequate
budgetary appropriation and poor
funding of capital projects in the sector.
The Chairman of the Committee, Hon.
Magaji Dau' Aliyu, gave the
commendation during the Committee's
oversight visit to TCN on Tuesday, 26th
October 2021, in Abuja. Following the
Committee's interaction with TCN
Management, the Chairman expressed
displeasure over the unsatisfactory
state of the sector, particularly the
PAGE 18
declining budgetary provision for TCN
over the years. He also raised fears that
the power situation in the country
might worsen unless urgent steps were
taken to address the funding deficit.
Hon. Aliyu used the occasion to
comment on general matters affecting
the NESI. He made it clear that the
Committee and indeed the leadership of
the National Assembly needed to keep
a closer watch on developments in the
Power Sector such as budgetary
appropriation for TCN and the role of
the Central Bank of Nigeria in matters
affecting Service Level Agreements
between TCN and Distribution
December 2021/Issue 32
By Eric Ephraim Ene
companies (DisCos).
He promised that the Committee would
deliberate on ways to improve TCN's
budgetary allocation for the execution
of more capital projects for the benefit
of Nigerians. According to him, the
oversight visit was to monitor progress
on the execution of projects for which
appropriation had been made.
He thereafter requested TCN
Management to present to the House, a
list of all pending projects and the
amount needed for completion, to
enable the House work towards making
HOUSE COMMITTEE
available sufficient funding for the
projects, so that TCN can further
expand the grid in service to the nation.
In his remarks, the Ag. Managing
Director and Chief Executive Officer,
TCN, Engr. Dr. Sule Ahmed Abdulaziz
thanked the Chairman and members of
the Committee for their insightful
comments and observations on the
state of the Power Sector, particularly
as it affects TCN. He appealed to the
Committee to consider increasing the
Federal Government budgetary
allocation to TCN for completion of
capital and ongoing transmission
projects across the country.
According to him, TCN has 135 major
capital projects, of which 42 have been
completed with 30 substations and 12
transmission lines, while some ongoing
projects financed by the Federal
Government have been stalled over the
Middle, Chairman House Committee on Power, Hon. Dau’ Aliyu, Ag. MD/CEO, TCN, Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz,
House Committee Members and TCN Top Management.
PAGE 19
years due to poor funding. He cited
examples of TCN budget for the year
2009 which was N23 billion as against
N5 billion for 2021, and N4 billion in the
budget proposal for 2022.
“You can see that without our Internally
Generated Revenue (IGR), we cannot
do anything for Nigerians, and we do
not know why the allocation keeps
going down,” Engr. Abdulaziz lamented.
He further highlighted some of the
achievements recorded by TCN to
include; effective implementation of the
Nigerian Electricity Grid Maintenance,
Expansion and Rehabilitation
Programme (NEGMERP), rehabilitation
of the Supervisory Control and Data
Acquisition (SCADA) and telecoms
network, Service Level Agreement
(SLA), WAPP North-Core regional
interconnection project, rehabilitation
of existing transmission lines and
December 2021/Issue 32
substations.
Others are proposed transmission lines
and substations projects across the
country funded by donor agencies
which are at various stages of
implementation; he noted that TCN's
wheeling capacity will continue to
increase with adequate funding.
In addition to the issue of poor funding,
the Ag. MD/CEO Engr. Abdulaziz also
drew attention to a major challenge that
TCN grapples with all the time; which is
payment of compensation for the
acquisition of transmission lines Right
of Way (RoW) in the country. “This is
one of the greatest challenges we have.
The money we pay for compensation in
some cases is even greater than the
cost of the projects. This is not healthy
for projects execution and the burden
of payment is entirely on TCN,” he said.
INTERVIEW December 2021/Issue 32

We are certain that the Grid will be more

Reliable with SCADA Applications in place
-Engr. Maman Lawal

related network challenges. The

collaborative workshop was successful
and a resolution to form committees to
resolve the problems was reached.
Notwithstanding the gains, room still
exists for further consultations and
improvement.

Update on SCADA and

Communication:
Evaluation for procuring a consultant for
the Supervisory Control and Data
Acquisition (SCADA) project has been
completed while evaluation for
Engineering Procurement and
Construction (EPC) contractor is almost
concluded. The importance of
SCADA/EMS with robust
Engr. Maman Lawal
telecommunication network cannot be
The ED (ISO) Engr. Maman Lawal is in charge of System and Market over emphasized.
Operations and as the year comes to an end, the Transmission News
crew sought to hear from the man who wears the cap of the System Operator
on achievements of ISO as a Business Unit in TCN and how the unit
Reactivation of SCADA
has fared in the power sector. Excerpts; equipment:
We are certain that the grid will be more
reliable with the Supervisory Control and
Achievements in 2021: Regulatory Commission (NERC) to Data Acquisition (SCADA) Applications
The grid recorded an All-time Peak improve electricity delivery to end in place. This is why our in-house
Generation and Maximum Daily Energy users. Because the SLA attempts to engineers carried out the reactivation of
ever attained within the year. Peak address TCN/DisCos interface moribund SCADA equipment,
generation was 5,801.60MW on challenges, the two companies have held restoration of Remote Terminal Units
01/03/2021 while the maximum daily several meetings, workshops, seminars (RTUs) using Virtual Private Network
energy of 119,471.15MWH was and other consultative sessions to (VPN) and capturing of critical lines
recorded on 05/03/2021. This is also a discuss factors hindering adequate using Internet of Things (IoT) to
year where TCN recorded the least supply along the value chain. This has improve grid visibility at National
number of system collapses – 2 partial created better synergy between the Control Center (NCC) for effective
and 2 total. power utilities. Recently, a workshop monitoring and supervision. Due to
was organized by the Association of recent technology, all our stations are
Impact of SLA on relationship Nigeria Electricity Distributors (ANED) in equipped with GSM lines of different
with the DisCos: conjunction with National Power network services, while consultants
Service Level Agreement (SLA) is an Training Institute of Nigeria (NAPTIN) were used in activation and re-latching
agreement between TCN and DisCos, to discuss Protective Relay of some Optical Ground Wire (OPGW) in
designed by the Nigerian Electricity Coordination, Operations and other improving our communication network.

PAGE 20
INTERVIEW December 2021/Issue 32

It is pertinent to state here that quality ensure grid security and stability. Such and smooth running of the grid. TCN
of power system parameters – controls like Automatic Generation customises the trainings to meet the
frequency and voltages have improved Control which involves a real-time specific needs of our goals and
considerably which has reduced the interaction of the SCADA System objectives.
number of stations equipment damage algorithm at the Master Station with a
across the network, compared to Plant or Generator at a Power Station, Transfer of skills is enhanced because
previous years where numerous Ancillary services activation and staff would have an immediate link
transformers and associated equipment automatic load shedding which define between the training exercise and their
either caught fire. Finally, our staff are the control level (primary, secondary, actual work as this are customized to
given modern on-the-field training tertiary) operations of the grid which is suit TCN equipment/machines and
obtainable in Transmission Service installations.
that enhances their performance.
Provider (TSP) or Independent System
Request: More on TCN's Use Operation (ISO) of many countries. TCN staff will contribute to the
efficiency and effectiveness of
of Network Automation
We believe that the function of the production processes since they would
System stop-gap solution will provide some have acquired sound/new theoretical
Network Automation System (NAS) is
data that will enable us have insight on background and hands-on practical
the use of a software for network
the situation of the power flow of the knowledge. The training likewise
management. In TCN, we deployed it as
grid even though it cannot compete promote consistency of approach
a stop gap solution to improve grid
with SCADA effectiveness. within the TCN as all staff are working
monitoring and transmission of data to
through the same issues, with the same
the National Control Centre. Of course
you know that it involves deploying
Market Operations organizational emphasis and direction.
Recall that earlier remittances to the
Internet of Things (IoT) solution and
use of Virtual Private Network (VPN)
service providers had improved Outlook for next year on grid
using GSM provided by commercial
tremendously through dexterous performance:
application of the Market Rules by the TCN aims to achieve zero system
telecommunication providers.
Market Operator. Presently, modern collapse, wheel power of high-quality
software are being procured to values, have a robust functional SCADA
We have deployed this system to
enhance the efficiency of billing and and with the cooperation of all
mitigate the absence of Remote
market settlement. stakeholders attain highest peak of load
Terminal Units at the stations that were
and generation.
not captured in the last SCADA World
Bank Project of 2004 and those that Training:
use Substation Automation System Several trainings (Technical and Advice to the participants in the
which are proprietary in design and Management) took place within the sector:
could not be integrated with the year and more are still on going. The To collaborate in achieving our primary
existing SCADA System. trainings are TCN and World Bank- goal irrespective of our professional
sponsored. Benefits of training the staff background and work as a team in order
Basically, the SCADA System for grid are more significant to the sustainability to attain targeted a milestone.
control and operation is a complete
network automation and information
system that performs real-time
monitoring and control by using
telemetries acquired from remote
stations, consisting of specialized
power system operational and
information technology hardware and
software used at the Master Station and
Remote Stations.

Management of the grid involves

Control room at NCC Osogbo
control at different levels in order to

PAGE 21
INSPECTION December 2021/Issue 32

Engr. Dr. Abdulaziz Tasks Contractors on Speedy

Completion of the New 2x150MVA, 330/132/33kV
Rimin Zakara Transmission Substation, Kano State
By Uloma Osuagwu

Ag. MD/CEO TCN, Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz, addressing contractor at the site of the ongoing 2x150MVA,
330/132/33kV Rimin Zakara Transmission Substation

T
he Ag. MD/CEO TCN, Engr. Dr. Sule
Abdulaziz has tasked contractors
handling the ongoing 2x150MVA,
330/132/33kV Rimin Zakara
Transmission Substation in Kano State to
ensure timely completion of the project.
The TCN boss who gave the charge
during an inspection tour of the new
substation, disclosed that the Company
has been mandated by the Federal
Government to ensure the timely
completion of all outstanding substations
and transmission lines projects.
132/33kV transformers and a reactor
was the second 330kV substation to be
constructed in Kano State. The project
when completed will bring relief to the
330/132/33kV Kumbotso Substation
which has served the State for several
years.
On his part, the Ag. Regional
Transmission Manager, Kano Region,
Engr. Badamasi Adamu, said the new
substation will greatly improve bulk
power transmission and cater to the
need of the ever-growing population in
not only Kano State, but also Jigawa, and
Katsina States. He also solicited for more
substations to be constructed in the area
to meet the rising demand for electricity
in Kano and its environs.
Speaking at the occasion, the
representative of the contractor, MBH
Power Limited, assured the TCN
helmsman and his team that his company
would do everything possible to ensure
the timely completion of the remaining
40% of the project once the materials
were delivered from Lagos.

He noted that on TCN's part, outstanding
materials for the project were already
available in TCN Lagos stores and would
soon be conveyed to Kano, noting that
the contractor should ensure that the
project was quickly completed as soon
as the equipment were delivered.
He further revealed that the 2x150MVA,
330/132/33kV transmission
substation, which will have 2No. 60MVA,
“...the new substation will
be a great development that
will improve bulk power
transmission and cater to the
need of the ever-growing
population in not only Kano
State, but also Jigawa, and
Katsina States.”
The second ongoing 330kV Rimin
Zakara Transmission Substation became
necessary over ten (10) years ago, but
due to paucity of funds the substation
was not constructed despite the
increase in population and commerce in
Kano metropolis and environs. The new
substation when completed would
increase bulk electricity available in the
axis for distribution companies to serve
consumers.

PAGE 22
AJAOKUTA
TCN Rehabilitates Circuit Breakers at Ajaokuta
Substation to Boost Bulk Power Delivery
T ransmission Company of Nigeria
(TCN), recently commenced the
rehabilitation of Circuit Breakers
at its 330/132kV substation, Ajaokuta
Sub-Region, Kogi State, 37 years after
their commissioning in 1984. The
rehabilitation work is aimed at further
protecting transformers in the
substation and ensuring operational
flexibility in the network.
While inspecting the progress of work
on the substation, Engr. Abdulkadir
Gwaram Adamu, Assistant General
Manager, System Electrical and
Technical Assistant to the Executive
Director, Transmission Service Provider
(TSP), disclosed that the rehabilitation
exercise was part of the strategic
initiatives of TCN Management to
improve quality of bulk power delivery
to distribution load centers across the
country and also provide a platform for
hands-on training for in-house
engineers.
According to him, 20 engineers were
drawn from five TCN regional offices to
PAGE 23
the Ajaokuta Substation to participate in
the rehabilitation work and to learn
practically from the project contractor
and be equipped subsequently to carry
out similar jobs in future.
He said that the rehabilitation of
Ajaokuta Circuit Breakers became
necessary due to obsolence, noting that
the Breakers by design needed to be
overhauled after 20 years,
notwithstanding routine maintenance
usually carried out.
Engr. Adamu further explained that
Circuit Breakers protect the power
transformers from abnormal conditions
or faults that may occur within or from
outside the network and equally
provides power supply flexibility, which
means that work can go on in the
switchyard without interrupting supply.
Speaking during the inspection, the
Regional Transmission Manager (RTM),
Abuja Region, Engr. Ali Ibrahim Sherifai
lauded TCN Management for approving
the rehabilitation work and charged the
December 2021/Issue 32
By Gabriel Gandu
engineers to remain focused and to
diligently learn, in order to gain more
experience especially now that TCN is
required to operate more efficiently in
the era of Service Level Agreement
(SLA).
Engr. Sherifai disclosed other TCN
projects in Abuja Region to include the
Lokoja 330/132kV Substation,
2x60MVA, 132/33kV transformer at
Kabba and Ayangba, and a 150MVA,
Circuit Breakers
330/132/33kV transformer in Obajana,
and assured that TCN was determined
to provide quality bulk power to
Nigerians.
On his part, the Assistant General
Manager, Ajaokuta Sub Region, Engr.
Tanko Balarabe Dami, who conducted
the team round the switchyard noted
that the rehabilitation exercise was
indeed strategic, because of the central
role of the substation in the supply of
bulk power to Abuja and Benin, noting
that the substation delivers power
readily to Abuja and Benin, as well as the
surrounding Work Centers in Lokoja,
Ayangba, Okene, and Okpella.
TSP WORKSHOP
TSP HOLDS APPRAISAL WORKSHOP
PLANS FOR 2022
T
he Transmission Service Provider
(TSP), one of the Business Units of
the Transmission Company of
Nigeria (TCN), held a two-day Appraisal
Workshop to review the performance of
its regional offices in the outgoing year
and plans for year 2022.
GM, Transmission Services, Engr. Jimi Adetola, ED TSP, Engr. Victor Adewumi,
GM ICT, Mrs Lola Oludade and GM Programe Coordination, Engr. Joseph Ciroma
Declaring the workshop open, the Ag.
Managing Director/Chief Executive
Officer, TCN, Engr. Dr. Sule Ahmed
Abdulaziz charged the Regional
Transmission Managers (RTMs) to be
proactive in discharging their duties,
noting they are the engine room of TCN,
the foot soldiers implementing and
supervising the expansion and
maintenance of the transmission grid. He
assured that Management would
continue to do everything within its
power to attend to requests that will
positively impact the grid.
PAGE 24
The Ag. MD/CEO commended the RTMs
for contributions to the efficiency and
stability of the grid and tasked them on
the need to be more committed to
making significant impact in their
regions, stressing the place of effective
collaboration with host communities and
security operatives to reduce the
incidence of vandalism. TCN lines patrol
team, he said, must ensure constant
patrol of the transmission lines.
Earlier, while welcoming participants, the
Executive Director, Transmission
Service Provider (TSP), Engr. Victor
Adewumi noted that the Workshop was
organized to enable the appraisal of the
activities of the ten (10) regions of TSP
and their managers for year 2021,
discuss challenges in each of the regions,
and collectively proffer solutions.
December 2021/Issue 32
He stated that the forum was a good
platform to learn from one another and
garner suggestions that would help
solve challenges in the regions. He
encouraged openness, noting that their
work schedule constitutes 70 percent
of TCNs activities and therefore cannot
be tak e n l i g ht l y. T h e E D- T SP
commended their contributions to the
stability and efficiency of the
transmission grid, saying that TCN was
able to make significant progress
through hard work and commitment.
In his words, “This forum will allow us to
see where we have done well and where
we have not, in other to make amends, so
that the coming year will be a better year
for the company”.
TSP WORKSHOP
Engr. Adewumi appreciated the avid
support of the Ag. MD/CEO, noting
that the MD's commitment to the
efficient running of the grid is evident
in his approval of projects and
innovations aimed at ensuring the
continued expansion of the nation's
grid and seamless delivery of bulk
power to distribution load centers
nationwide. He urged the Managers to
sustain the zeal and team spirit in the
discharge of their duties, saying that
maintenance and line tracing must be
given due attention to enable TSP build
on the gains of continued network
expansion.
The ED TSP assured them of his
continued support, noting that as year
2021 was coming to an end, higher
performance was expected from them
in 2022.
Engr. Adewumi gave a general
overview of the collective
achievement of TSP in 2021, noting
that within the last five years, there has
been a steady decline in the number of
TCN Management and Regional Transmission Managers
PAGE 25
total system collapses. According to
him, “in 2017, there were 15 total
collapses and 9 partial collapse. In
2018, there was 12 total collapses and
1 partial collapse. In 2019, there were 9
total collapses and 1 partial collapse. In
2020, it was 4 partial collapses and in
2021, only 2 total collapses with 2
partial collapse; one total and one
partial was caused by tripping of TCN
transmission lines, while the other was
caused by a generation company.
He also disclosed that since the
inception of the present Management,
TCN has not witnessed any incidence
of power transformer explosion, even
though it recorded one failure each at
the Apo and Gombe Transmission
Substations. Commending the RTMs of
Bauchi and Shiroro for their resilience
and doggedness, the ED noted that
they have continued to deliver on their
projects despite the security challenge
posed by insurgency.
Presentations were made by the
General Manager (GM), Program
December 2021/Issue 32
Coordination, Engr. Joseph Ciroma and
the GM, Market Development, Engr.
Benedict Ogbu on “Donor-funded
projects in the transmission regions
and strategies to improve TCN
revenue and reduce losses to 7.5%”
respectively.
During the Workshop, the ten (10)
Regional Transmission Managers
including Abuja, Bauchi, Benin, Enugu,
Kaduna, Kano, Lagos, Port Harcourt,
Osogbo, and Shiroro, made
presentations on their respective
regions, outlining their scope of
coverage including substations and
lines capacities, achievements
recorded and challenges as well as
suggestions on the way forward.
The Appraisal Workshop held on the
6th of December 2021 at the TCN
Corporate Headquarters, Abuja had in
attendance were all the General
Managers and Regional Transmission
Managers in TSP.
 WIND FARM
FG SET TO COMMISSION 10MW KATSINA
WIND FARM – Engr. Aliyu
Minister of Power, Engr. Abubakar D. Aliyu (right) in handshake with the
Acting Chairman of Katsina Elders’ Forum, Senator Abba Turaki
I
n line with the Federal
Government's determination to
revamp all sectors of the economy,
particularly the Power Sector, the
Honourable Minister of Power, Engr.
Abubakar Aliyu, FNSE has disclosed the
Federal Government's commitment to
the completion and commissioning of
the 10 Megawatts Katsina Wind Farm
Project.
The Minister made this disclosure when
he received the Katsina State Elders'
Forum in his office, on Tuesday, 23rd
November 2021 in Abuja.
Engr. Aliyu who ordered the prompt
resumption of work on the Wind Farm
upon assumption of duty at the Federal
Ministry of Power, cited vandalism of
turbines, criminality, and insurgency as
some of the key factors that have
delayed the completion of the project
since its inception.
He called for change of attitude of
Nigerians in view of the incessant
destruction of social infrastructure
meant to benefit citizens, stating that
brotherhood, and unity were the
PAGE 26
December 2021/Issue 32
By Uloma Osuagwu
2009, and consists of the
Engineering, Procurement,
Construction (EPC) and
installation contract of 37
units of GEVMP with 275
(kilowatts) power capacity
of wind turbine generators.
The project also includes
the construction of 23
kilometres of 33 kilovolts
(kV) power transmission
line from the 10MW Wind
Farm to evacuate the
generated power to the
132/33kV Katsina
Transmission Substation
belonging to the
Transmission Company of
Nigeria (TCN).
panacea for development, and solicited
their support for Government’s effort
at improving the economy.
Speaking earlier, Senator Abba Ali
Turaki, the Acting Chairman of the
Forum, said their group's visit was to
follow-up on the status of energy
projects sited in Katsina State that
were yet to be completed, such as the
Wind Farm and a 330kV power project
that was meant to supply electricity to
Katsina State and its environs.
He congratulated Engr. Aliyu on his
appointment as the new Minister of
Power, and for his genuine interest in
ensuring prompt completion of the
Kastina Wind Farm on assumption of
office. He expressed the confidence of
his Forum in the capacity of the
Honourable Minister to promptly
complete other outstanding projects in
Katsina State, owing to the Minister's
track record of achievements before
assuming office as Minister of Power.
The 10MW Katsina Wind Farm project
which is located in Lambar Rimi area of
Katsina State was originally awarded in
The 10 Megawatts Katsina Wind Farm
 MAINSTREAM
FG Commends Plan by MESL to
Increase Generation Capacity
Left: Managing Director/CEO of MESL, Engr. Lamu Audu, Chairman of MESL Col. Sani Bello (RTD) and DG BPP, Alex Okoh
T
he Federal Government
has commended the plan
by Mainstream Energy
Solutions Limited (MESL),
Operator of Kainji and
Jebba Hydro Power
Plants to improve power generation
with the enhancement of its critical
infrastructure at its Kainji Power Plant
in Niger State.
The Minister of Power, Engr. Aliyu
Abubakar FNSE, who was represented
by Mr. Ahmad Salihijo, MD Rural
Electrification (REA), gave the
commendation during MESL's contract
signing ceremony with Power China
Engineering Corporation for the
rehabilitation of units 1G9, 1G3, and
1G4 in Kainji, recently in Abuja.
According to the Minister, the capacity
recovery project would put an
additional 280MW into the National
grid and by extension increase the
quantum of power transmitted to the
West African Power Pool (WAPP), and
PAGE 27
consequently reduce the energy gap
in the subregion.
Speaking, the Chairman of MESL Col.
Sani Bello (RTD), stated that the
company has navigated many
challenges from 2013 when it took
over the Management of Kainji and
Jebba Plants, and noted that the
company was committed to efficiency
in running its operations, and would
continue to do so for the benefit of
electricity consumers nationwide and
beyond.
Meanwhile, the Ag. MD/CEO of TCN,
Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz gave the
assurance that TCN was ready to
evacuate the additional 280MW
generation from the Kainji Power
Plants. He commended MESL's facility
upgrade efforts and noted that with
the current transmission capacity of
over 8,000MW, TCN was successfully
wheeling the current generation
capacity of 5,200MW through the
grid. The grid therefore can easily
December 2021/Issue 32
By Jumoke Dare
accommodate additional capacity
from MESL.
Engr. Abdulaziz noted that MESL has
been very consistent in its contribution
to the power sector and WAPP saying,
“At the West African Power Pool
(WAPP), we have seen your
contribution in terms of energy and
participation in WAPP programme and
I say this as the Chairman of WAPP.”
He encouraged other generators to
emulate MESL in this regard.
On his part, the Managing
Director/CEO of MESL, Engr. Lamu
Audu expressed appreciation for the
continued support of TCN
management, noting that the project
when completed, will increase the
capacity of both the Kainji and Jebba
Plants and invariably the quantum of
power available for electricity
consumers in Nigeria and the West
African Power Pool (WAPP).
GRID STABILITY December 2021/Issue 32

TCN Records Milestone Achievement

In Grid Stability With Only
Two System Collapse in 2021
By Ndidi Mbah

T
he Transmission Company of He further noted that the transmission
Nigeria (TCN) recorded only two “...this milestone achievement in system which experienced its first and
full system collapses in the whole second collapses in 2021, in the months of
of 2021, a milestone achievement grid stability and efficiency February and August, were both restored
attributed to the systematic and diligent within the two years of within 45mins. This he said, is equally a
implementation of the Nigerian significant departure from the previous
Electricity Grid Rehabilitation and assumption of office by the years where system collapses were not
Expansion Programme (NEGMERP). present Management of TCN is only rampant but full grid restoration
sometimes took up to 24hours.
According to the Ag. MD/CEO Engr. Dr. quite significant with only two
Sule Abdulaziz, this milestone He commended the staff of TCN who have
system collapses within the year
achievement in grid stability and demonstrated palpable zeal to ensure that
efficiency within the two years of 2021 as against four partial grid stability, and efficiency is sustained,
assumption of office by the present despite the fact that the nations
Management of TCN is quite significant
system collapses in 2020”. transmission grid does not have a SCADA
with only two system collapses within system that sees the entire grid real time.
the year 2021 as against four partial He noted that there exists healthy
system collapses in 2020. These recordings of the past two synergy and team spirit between the Management and staff
years, show for the first time in the history of the nation's which is enhanced by the conducive operating environment
transmission grid, high level of stability in bulk power provided by the Minister of Power. This he said, has enabled the
transmission, standard system frequency and efficiency of the company run its operations more efficiently.
grid within two years stretch.

PAGE 28
PRESS RELEASES December 2021/Issue 32

Last Quarter
PRESS RELEASES By Ndidi Mbah

Ag. MD CEO Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz and some management staff in Lagos to inspect the fallen towers

In line with efforts to further expand its transmission capacity, several activities
of TCN made headline news. Some are compiled as follows:

LAGOS
TCN ENERGIZES 2ND 330kV AKANGBA -IKEJA WEST
TRANSMISSION LINE ON FULL LOAD.
Sequel to the vandalized pipeline fire which brought down five
towers and 330kV transmission line, TCN energized the
second 330kV Akangba - Ikeja West transmission line which
had before the fire incident served as a redundant line, carrying
only 59MW on the same axis, in keeping with TCN's N-1
reliability criteria. The 330kV transmission line is conveniently
wheeling bulk power at full load to Akangba Transmission
Substation in Lagos.
According to the Ag. MD/CEO, TCN Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz
who visited the site of the incident on the 24th of December,
2021, the same day of the fire incident, “I directed that the
second 330kV line which tripped during the incident be
urgently patrolled, by our engineers and certified okay before it
was energized about 2:38pm the same day”. The second line
now wheels 121MW to the Akangba Transmission Substation,
meaning that areas under Ikeja DisCo whose supply were
affected by the pipeline fire incident had normal supply
restored to them.
He noted that in view of the necessity of transmission lines
redundancy especially in areas as densely populated as Lagos
State, he quickly directed two contractors to mobilize to site to
commence the reconstruction of the towers and 330kV
transmission line.
Meanwhile, the inferno caused massive damage to a large
portion of the 330kV Ikeja-West Akangba transmission line 1,
destroying the conductor, which triggered a resistant pull on
the high-tension towers along the line route causing five
towers to collapse.

PAGE 30
PRESS RELEASES
The incident which is estimated to have occurred at about
00.29 in the early hours of the 24th of December, 2025, cut
off 145MW of bulk power to the Akangba Substation. The
transmission towers affected are the two closest to the site of
the incident and three across the Lagos Canal.
To alleviate the inconveniences associated with power
outage, TCN's operators rearranged bulk electricity
transmitted on the burnt line route to the second 330kV
previously carrying 59MW. Within two hours, TCN
successfully back-fed the substations which were affected by
the towers collapse, while the engineers patrolled the second
330kV transmission line which tripped as a result of the
incident, to ensure it has no fault before it was energized.
Incidents such as this is a major setback to TCN's concerted
efforts in implementing its grid expansion and stability
programme under its well-articulated Electricity Grid
Maintenance, Expansion and Rehabilitation Programme. This is
One of the completed towers that collapsed due to an
inferno caused by pipeline vandals in Lagos
because the re-erection of five towers and restringing of the
330kV transmission line is a major project that costs a lot of
money meant for grid maintenance and expansion and will
take a while to complete.
The Ag. MD/CEO appealed to Nigerians to desist from
activities such as pipeline vandalization and other destructive
tendencies, as they all have very far-reaching negative
effects on the nation at large. The issue of protecting our
national assets, he said, is imperative and must be taken very
seriously so that the stability of the nation's network and the
development of the nation is not compromised.
He reiterated the need for everyone to be part of the fight
against vandalism of the nation's assets. This he noted, is very
important as TCN lost not just the towers and lines, but also
destroyed is the vandalized pipeline along Isheri Olofin, off
Igbando – LASU expressway of Lagos State. Both, he noted
are national assets.
PAGE 31
December 2021/Issue 32
RECONDUCTORING OF THE IKEJA
WEST – PAPALANTO 132kV TRANSMISSION LINE
To solve the problem of poor power supply in Ikeja
West/Papalanto axis of Lagos State, TCN has concluded the
reconductoring of the second phase of the old overloaded
132kV Ikeja West - Alimoso – Ogba – Alausa - Ota – Papalanto
240MW transmission line. The old line has been replaced with a
new high capacity 500MW conductor, with plans already in
place to commence the 3rd phase.
Presently TCN has five power stations along that line route with
a total capacity of 570MW, with the old line there was
suppressed load as the line was only able to deliver 240MW,
which was grossly inadequate in view of the rapid increase in
human population and socio-economic activities in Lagos.
TCN had to take the strategic decision of reconductoring the
old 132kV transmission line in phases, working round the clock
to ensure adequate bulk power supply is delivered to
distribution load centers in Lagos for onward distribution by the
Ikeja and Eko DisCos to their customers. With the rapid increase
Ag. MD CEO TCN, Engr. Sule Abdulaziz in a group photograph with
TCN engineers at the site of the new multi-circuit towers erected
along Kaduna-Jos transmission line route
in electricity demand, the upgrading of the line became
imperative as power supply to electricity consumers was
becoming impossible.
The first phase of the reconductoring work from Towers 1 to
57 was carried out earlier in 2021, from 1st February and was
completed on the 9th August of the same year. During the
period, missing sky wire were also replaced. The second phase
from Ogba Transmission Substation to Alausa Transmission
Substation Towers 1 to 14 commenced on the 11th of October
to the 25th of November, 2021. The third phase is billed to
commence within the first quarter of 2022.
KADUNA
KADUNA -JOS 330kV TRANSMISSION LINE UPGRADE AND
NEW MULTI CIRCUIT TOWERS
TCN is at the final stage of construction works on its new
Kaduna – Jos 330kV double circuit transmission line, with the
erection of eight triple-circuit towers at the intersection point
PRESS RELEASES
of the new double circuit line and existing single circuit 330kV
transmission line, to enable the stringing of the three 330kV
transmission lines.
330kV transmission line, to enable the stringing of the three
330kV lines.
With the new lines, bulk power transmission on that line
route will be upgraded from 500 megawatts (MW) to
1,500MW, which is 200 percent capacity increase.
Reconstruction work was completed within eight days,
from the 8th to 15th December 2021.
The decision to reconstruct and upgrade the Kaduna -Jos
SC transmission line was due to the fact that the line is
overloaded and can no longer cope with the load profile in
that axis. The completion of the new 330kV Kaduna- Jos DC
transmission lines has resolved the present and anticipated
increase in load demand on the line route.
TCN's use of multi-circuit towers in some locations
prevented the demolition of properties in heavily built-up
areas while executing the project. A total of eight (8) no
existing single circuit towers were however dismantled and
reconstructed into special triple-circuit towers. The
increase in capacity to 1500MW positively impacted
voltage stability on the axis.
ABUJA FCT
TCN COMMENCES INSTALLATION OF A NEW GIS
SUBSTATION PROJECT IN GWARIMPA, ABUJA
The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) will
commence the installation of a brand new Gas Insulated
Substation (GIS) in Gwarimpa, Abuja. Installation works on
the project will start Wednesday, 27th of October and will
be completed by Tuesday, 9th of November, 2021.
The new 2x60MVA, 132/33kV Gas-insulated Substation
(GIS) is part of TCN's efforts to reinforce the high voltage
transmission ring project around Abuja, which will increase
bulk power available for Abuja DisCo to take to its
customers in Abuja metropolis and environs.
During the fourteen-day GIS installation period, bulk power
delivery to the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company
(AEDC) will not be affected as TCN has made adequate
plans to ensure that the quantum of power supplied AEDC is
maintained. This means that the installation of TCN's new
GIS substation will not affect bulk supply to Abuja DisCo for
its customers.
The Gwarimpa GIS Substations project, when completed
and commissioned into Circuit, will increase the quantum of
bulk power supply in Abuja and the environs.
TCN will continue to execute new transmission projects
PAGE 32
December 2021/Issue 32
even as it completes old ones, in line with its electricity grid
maintenance, expansion, and rehabilitation program,
targeted at putting in place a more stable and efficient
network.
TCN SUCCESSFULLY REPAIRS AND ENERGIZES THE
KATAMPE – CENTRAL AREA 132kV UNDERGROUND
TRANSMISSION CABLE LINE - 1 IN ABUJA
TCN has completed repair of the faulty portion of one of the
132kV Katampe – Central Area underground Transmission
cables supplying bulk electricity to TCN's Gas Insulated
Substation (GIS) in Central Area, Abuja. Works was
completed and the cable energized at about 15:09hrs on
Monday, 1st November 2021.
Recall that a portion of the underground transmission cable
line - 1 that passes through the IBB Golf Club, was damaged
by an excavation machine working for the Club, on 23rd
December 2019. The delay in the repair of the underground
cable line - 1, was due to the lack of cable repair kit and
expertise required to undertake the repair work in the
country as well as the Covid'19 pandemic.
Following the successful restoration of the 132kV
underground transmission cable line - 1, TCN now has bulk
transmission line redundancy, which implies that if there is a
sudden failure of one line, the second will be available. The
repaired and energized second underground cable line - 1
also means that TCN can now supply more bulk power to
AEDC.
The Katampe – Central Area 132kV transmission line - 1
supplies power to AEDC for strategic areas in Abuja such as
the Central Area Business District, the 3 Arm-Zone, DSS
Headquarters, NNPC Headquarters, Federal Secretariat, and
environs.
TCN is committed to rehabilitating and executing new
transmission projects even as it completes old ones, in line
with its Nigerian Electricity Grid Maintenance, Expansion,
and Rehabilitation Program geared towards putting in place
a more robust transmission grid.
Ongoing construction work at the new Gas Insulated
Substation in Gwarimpa, Abuja
 RWG COMMITTEE
TCN MD Charges Inaugurated Members
of Rules Working Group on Commitment
Rules Working Group Committee Members
A
cting Managing
Director/Chief Executive
Officer, of TCN, Engr. Dr.
Sule Ahmed Abdulaziz has
charged the newly
inaugurated members of
the Rules Working Group to be
committed in carrying out the task of
reviewing the Market Rules, bearing in
mind that the exercise is aimed at
advancing the Nigerian Electricity
Market.
Engr. Abdulaziz gave the charge during
the inauguration of members of the
Rules Working Group on Thursday, 25th
November 2021 at its Corporate
Headquarters in Abuja.
He stated that the electricity sector is
pivotal to the development of the
PAGE 33
nation and must therefore be well
guided by rules that would ensure its
growth and efficiency, noting that the
entire nation is looking unto the
committee with expectation as their
mandate is expected to impact the
advancement of the Nigerian Electricity
Market.
In his words, “Soon after this ceremony,
you will be in charge of making
amendments to the Market Rules, I urge
you to look at countries with thriving
electricity markets and apply what is
achievable in our environment”.
The Market Operator, Engr. Edmund Eje
enjoined the members to bring in their
expertise and be committed to the task
at hand, stating that he had confidence
in the Chairman of the Group, Mr Ali
December 2021/Issue 32
By Joy Egbase
Ahmad Bukar, who is a
good driver of the Market
Rules. He warned that any
erring member of the
committee will be
sanctioned. He implored the
group to be innovative in
carrying out their
assignment.
Members of the group
were tasked with the
mandate of helping
Stakeholders Advisory
Panel (SAP) assess
problems or gaps in the
Market Rules or procedures
identified in the Rules
Report, accept and review
proposals presented to the
Panel; as well as assist the
Market Operator in the
implementation, revision,
amendment of the Market
Rules and the drafting of procedures.
The Chairman of the newly inaugurated
Group, Mr Ali Ahmad Bukar promised he
would work assiduously with his team
to achieve the mandate of the Group, “I
thank you for the confidence you have
in me and my team, the selections today
have injected tremendous energy into
me, we must work within the time
frame given by the Market Operator to
accomplish our task.”
Other members of the group include:
Engr. Godwin Emmanuel, Prof Steve
Ogali, Engr. Roland Lwindi, Barr. Pamela
Gold, Barr. Uche Okala, Engr. Hamisu
Ishaq Usman, Mr. Ogbu Benedict, Engr.
Ohanenye Joshua, Barr. Peter Ogbobine,
and Engr. Ojo Adebiyi.
 EXCAVATION
Excavation Activities, a Continuing
Threat to TCN Operations
s the licensee and
A
operator of the National
Grid, the Transmission
Company of Nigeria
(TCN) has substations,
towers and high-
tension transmission
lines which transverse the length and
breadth of the nation, with some of its
high-tension cables buried
underground especially in the Federal
Capital Territory, Abuja. The high-
tension transmission lines which also
run through the forests, above the
swamp, hills and valleys are essential to
the transmission of bulk electrical
power to distribution load centers
nationwide, where Distribution
Companies off-take and distribute to its
consumers.
Typically, some of the terrains are often
difficult to access for regular lines patrol
for monitoring purposes. No matter
where these assets are installed, their
PAGE 34
Excavation site in Dawaki, Abuja
safety and structural integrity are
critical to the quality of transmission
services and system operations, and
infact to the overall performance of the
grid. In recent time however, the
location of these very important
developmental assets, it would seem,
have made them target for vandals,
laterite excavators and bush burning
incidents.
With the consistent implementation of
grid expansion and rehabilitation
strategy under the Nigerian Electricity
Grid Maintenance, Expansion and
Rehabilitation Program (NEGMERP), the
Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz-led
Management, aims at putting in place a
more robust transmission grid that
would enhance efficiency and stability
of the grid in bulk transmission. It is
however sad to note that some of these
efforts are being threatened by vandals
and unregulated activities of sand
miners and excavators around
December 2021/Issue 32
By Stella Ejikonye
transmission towers and other TCN
installations.
Laterite excavation compromises the
integrity of tower bases by making the
area prone to erosion, ground shifting
and eventual collapse of the tower and
line, with huge cost implication on
operational plans. The indiscriminate
excavation of sand around transmission
tower bases for commercial and
construction purposes have become a
perennial challenge to TCN.
Recently, TCN Management visited
some excavation sites around the
Katampe Transmission Substation and
major power transmission lines in the
Abuja Region and sadly observed the
extensive damage to the tower bases
due to the indiscriminate excavation of
sand for commercial, building, estate
development and road construction
purposes. The unchecked activities of
the estate developers as well as a
 EXCAVATION December 2021/Issue 32

AGM (Transmission Services), Abuja Region, Engr. Mahmud Suleiman, representative of

FCDA, and some security personnel at the excavation site, Katampe, Abuja

Chinese road construction company
have posed a continuing danger to
these critical transmission facilities in the
Abuja Region, especially the Katampe
Area Control Centre and Substation
which carry 330/ 132/33kV lines that
deliver power to the nation's capital and
environs as well as some parts of Niger
and Nasarawa States.
The facilities in this corridor have three
key transmission line points comprising
a 330kV line that supplies power from
the Shiroro Hydro Plant in Niger State to
Abuja, and a 132kV line that evacuates
from the substation to the 132kV Kubwa
substation and extends to the 132kV
Suleja substation in Niger State. The
Katampe Substation also has another
132kV transmission line that connects
to the 132kV Central Area Substation,
the 132kV Apo Substation and the
132kV Karu Substation, before radiating
to the 132kV Keffi Substation in
Nasarawa State. At another section
within the Shiroro to Katampe 330kV
transmission line, sand excavation has
almost cut off the base of a transmission
line tower and severely endangered the
proposed 132kV transmission station
under the TCN Abuja Wheeling Scheme
and the Mpape District.
The menace posed by the illegal
activities of these sand excavators was
recently highlighted by Engr.
Mahmud Suleiman, Assistant General
Manager (Transmission Services) for
the Abuja Region when he was quoted
as saying, “In spite of the significant role
of this Substation and its accompanying
power transmission lines, the activities
of estate developers and sand
excavators have caused serious
damage to the environs where the
towers of the power transmission lines
pass through. These unwholesome
practices will affect electricity
consumers as well as other Nigerians if
not checked on time by Government.”
Notwithstanding the perennial challenge
of indiscriminate sand excavation and
estate development around TCN
infrastructure in total disregard to its
Right of Way, the Management of the
Company has not relented in its efforts
to address the menace. Joint patrol and
surveillance of the facilities have been
intensified through a deliberate strategy
to engage the Department of
Development Control of the Federal
Capital Development Authority (FCDA),
Nigerian Security and Civil Defense
Corps and the Nigeria Police. It is
gratifying to note that this collaborative
strategy is yielding positive results as
intruders have in many instances been
warded off from encroaching on TCN's
Right of Way.

Laterite excavation site close to TCN towers in Dawaki Abuja.

PAGE 35
 ASHAKA CEMENT December 2021/Issue 32

L-R; Ag. MD/CEO TCN, Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz and MD Ashaka Cement, Mr. Ibrahim Aminu

Ashaka Cement Seeks TCN Support for

Stable Power Supply to the Company
By Stanford Nneji

I
nadequate power supply has
remained the bane of the
manufacturing industry in Nigeria.
Companies affected by this
unfavorable situation have adopted
various strategies to deal with the
power supply challenge. In
continuation of efforts to address the
power situation as it affects Ashaka
Cement Company, its Management
paid a courtesy visit to TCN at its
Corporate Headquarters in Abuja
recently to explore ways the company
could have more stable supply from
the grid.
The Ashaka Cement team led by its
Managing Director Mr. Ibrahim Aminu
met with TCN Management to make a
case for improved power supply to
the company and by extension, the
North East region. He said that as the
largest manufacturing industry and
also the highest company taxpayer in
the North East, Ashaka Cement has not
been able to operate optimally due to
unstable power supply.
In his response, Engr. Dr. Sule
Abdulaziz, the Ag. MD/CEO of TCN
disclosed that major projects were
being undertaken in the North East to
improve bulk electricity transmission
and assured the team of stable supply
to the company as soon as the
projects were completed. He further
disclosed TCN's plan to install a new
power transformer as soon as funds
were available, to boost bulk power
supply in the area and invariably to the
company.
The MD remarked that Ashaka Cement
was a very important stakeholder that
provides employment to a large
number of Nigerians which is a focus
of the Muhamadu Buhari
Administration, and promised that TCN
would go to great length to ensure
adequate supply to the cement
company for it to operate more
profitably for the benefit of Nigerians.
Speaking, the Executive Director,
Transmission Service Provider, Engr.
Victor Adewumi, further explained that
part of the supply challenge in the
North East was voltage disparity
which is due to the long stretch of the
transmission line. He said the situation
was bound to improve with the
installation of a reactor around Jos and
Makurdi lines to increase voltage
profile and reduce voltage spike and
surge.

PAGE 36
VRA
Ghana Firm Seeks Collaboration on New
Ways to Tackle Electricity Challenges
A
s the implementation of the
West African Programme for
regional inter-connectivity for
the expansion of cross border electricity
trade and integration of cooperative
approaches to addressing electricity
challenges in the West African sub
region intensifies, Volta River Authority
(VRA), the Ghanaian utility for power
generation and operator of the national
energy supply grid recently visited TCN
to seek further collaboration with the
Transmission Company of Nigeria
(TCN).
The team, led by the Manager, Strategy
and Planning Department, Mr. Clement
Boakye, sought to understand specific
aspects of the Nigerian Power sector
and explored the possibility of
experience sharing and knowledge
PAGE 37
exchange between the two regional
utilities.
According to him, “We believe that the
two systems even by virtue of
interconnection are similar and we
would want to look at some of the
things that you have overcome and see
what we can learn and possibly, also
share some of the things we have been
able to overcome”
In his response, the Ag. Managing
Director of TCN, Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz
welcomed the team and commended
the initiative of VRA, assuring them of
TCN's preparedness to share from their
common experiences as critical
stakeholders of the power sector in
West Africa. He added that TCN
engineers would assist them with all
Volta River Authority and TCN team
December 2021/Issue 32
By Joy Egbase
necessary information concerning
Nigeria's transmission system and
answer their questions on the
Generation and Distribution companies
in Nigeria. He commended VRA's efforts
to seek information to further improve
their operations.
Arrangements were made to ensure
that the team from the VRA were able to
readily access the information they
required from TCN. In attendance at the
meeting were the Executive Director,
Transmission Service Provider (TSP),
Engr. Victor Adewumi, Executive
Director, Independent System
Operations, Engr. Maman Lawal, Market
Operator, Engr. Edmund Eje, General
Manager, Public Affairs, Mrs. Ndidi Mbah,
and the Technical Adviser to the Ag.
MD/CEO, Engr. Aminu Tahir.
AfDB-PROJECTS December 2021/Issue 32

AfDB Engages TCN on Nigeria

Transmission Expansion Project
By Eric Ephraim Ene

cross section of AfDB and TCN management team during the meeting

T
he African Development Bank
(AfDB) has indicated readiness
for more participatory
intervention in the Power Sector in
Nigeria, for improved service delivery.
The Bank made this known when the
Vice President, Power, Energy, Climate
and Green Growth, Dr. Kevin Kariyuki led
a delegation from the Bank on a fact-
finding visit to TCN Corporate
Headquarters, Abuja on Friday, 22nd
October 2021.
Speaking during the visit, Dr Kariyuki
stated that the more participatory a
process was, the greater the ownership
of the process and invariably better
outcomes. He acknowledged the critical
role the transmission system plays in the
Nigeria power value chain and
requested TCN to identify challenges
confronting the Company in areas such
as evacuation capacity, system losses
and in particular, interface issues with
the Distribution Companies (DisCos) for
possible intervention by AfDB.
According to him, the interface
relationship with the DisCos was
essential in ensuring that the consumers
were efficiently serviced and that
revenue or cash flow was available to
meet the financing of projects in the
value chain.
Dr. Kariyuki further requested for
updates on ongoing projects, especially
those encapsulated in the Transmission
Rehabilitation & Expansion Programme
(TREP), and the Nigerian Transmission
Expansion Project (NTEP I & II). In his
words “we will love to hear any
challenges so far associated with the
programmes and likely timeline for the
launch of the projects as we understand
there is a significant crossover”.
Responding, the Acting Managing
Director and Chief Executive Officer of
TCN, Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz restated

PAGE 38
AfDB-PROJECTS
TCN's commitment to planned
systematic expansion of the nation's
transmission grid through the
implementation of the Nigerian
Transmission Expansion Project (NTEP I
and II). He commended the AfDB for the
approval to construct sub-stations for
the project, and noted that the approval
for the transmission line was being
expected from the Bank for work to
commence. 'We have gotten approval
for the sub-stations but for the lines, it
has taken a long time. We have not
received anything from AfDB” he said.
He promised to come up with a list of
projects that TCN would want the AfDB
to invest in with priority given to the
proposed construction of Double Circuit
transmission lines from Bauchi through
Jigawa to Kano.
On his part, the Executive Director,
Independent System Operations (ISO),
Engr. Maman Lawal, while responding to
the question of DisCos' capacity to take
the load wheeled by TCN, noted that the
performance of DisCos has not been
adequate, based on their inability to
evacuate load available to them at the
PAGE 39
“...lauded TCN
for its ability to
meter all DisCos and
used the occasion to
appeal to all market
participants to comply
with its obligations to
ensure flow of
liquidity.”
distribution load centers across the
country. Engr. Lawal, disclosed that
transmission losses have been reduced
substantially as the Transmission
Service Provider (TSP) has been able to
surpass the given threshold of 8.05%.
Speaking also at the occasion, the
Executive Director, Transmission
Service Provider (TSP), Engr. Victor
Adewumi, explained that security
measures had been put in place by TCN
to checkmate vandalism of TCN
equipment.
On his part, the General Manager,
Programme Coordination in TCN, Engr.
Participants at the meeting
December 2021/Issue 32
Joseph Ciroma, gave a detailed
breakdown of various interventions by
donor agencies for the development of
transmission infrastructure in Nigeria,
indicating allocated fund from each
agency. He stated that the total
allocated funds from donor agencies
was $1.6billion, out of which only $1.1b
has been made available for the
execution of projects. On NTEP 1
projects, he disclosed that
environmental issues have been
concluded, with the Federal
Government provision in the 2021
Appropriation Bill to take care of
environmental issues.
Contributing to the discussion, the
Market Operator, Engr. Edmund Eje
informed the AfDB team that though the
GenCos and DisCos signed Service
Level Agreements (SLA) to improve
their capacity and networks during the
privatization process, DisCos have been
unable to meet up with the requirement
of TCN Market Rules. He, however,
lauded TCN for its ability to meter all
DisCos and used the occasion to appeal
to all market participants to comply with
obligations to ensure flow of liquidity.
PHOTO SPEAK December 2021/Issue 32

From The Ministry of Power

Hon. Minister of Power, Engr. Abubakar D. Aliyu being decorated by Centre; Hon. Minister of Power, Engr. Abubakar D. Aliyu, Left, Chad
Maj. Gen. A.M Jibril rtd. with the Armed Forces remembrance day Ambassador, Abakar Saleh Chahaimi ; Right , Permanent Secretary,
emblem launch 2022. Minister of State Power, Goddy Jedy Agba behind. Ministry of Power, Nebeolisa Anako. during a courtesy visit by the
Chadian Ambassador to the Ministry of Power.

The Minister of Power, Engr. Abubakar Aliyu during the inauguration of Ministerial Power Sector Working Group (MPSWG),
a top management tool to coordinate, monitor and evaluate activities in the Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).

The North-East Governors held the 16th Governor's Forum in Damaturu, Yobe State. Security issues dominated the agenda even as the
Chairman of the Forum, Prof Umar Zulum, charged the military to end terrorism in the region. The Minister of Power, Engr. Abubakar Aliyu
was represented by the Ag. MD/CEO of TCN Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz.

PAGE 40
PHOTO SPEAK December 2021/Issue 32

In-house Engineers At Work

TCN engineers at work during the replacement of damaged Marshalling kiosk and underground cables
at Yandev Transmission Substation, Benue State

TCN engineers installing a brand new 33kV current transformer and Circuit Breaker
at Suleja 132/33kV Transmission Substation, Niger State .

TCN engineers at work during the replacement of Blue Phase Bushings on 60MVA 132/33kV power transformer
at Apo Transmission Substation, Abuja, FCT

PAGE 41
 ECN December 2021/Issue 32

Energy Commission of Nigeria

Seeks Better Understanding
of TCN Operations
By Jumoke Dare

L-R; DG ECN, Prof. Eli Jidere Bala, ED ISO, TCN, Engr. Maman Lawal and GM, R&D, Dr. Tom Inugonum

T
he Energy Commission of
Nigeria (ECN) is a body set up
by the Federal Government to
provide strategic plans and coordinate
national policies in the energy sector in
Nigeria. In furtherance of this mandate,
the Director-General of ECN, Prof. Eli
Jidere Bala led a Management
delegation to TCN on a mission to have
first-hand knowledge about TCN's
operations, to enable the Commission
update its policies as it relates to
agencies and stakeholders.
Receiving the delegation on behalf of
the Ag. MD/CEO Engr. Dr. Sule
Abdulaziz on 12th November 2021, the
Executive Director ISO, Engr. Maman
Lawal expressed appreciation for the
initiative of ECN, describing it as the
requisite synergy that can drive the
industry going forward. He assured the
visiting team that TCN would always
welcome such collaborative efforts
that aim at enhancing the attainment of
it’s mandate, as well as improvement in
the power sector generally.
He thanked the delegation for the
initiative they took in acquainting
themselves with the activities of TCN,
especially at the present time when
TCN is striving to increase grid
capacity and reduce technical losses in
its operations, to ensure that the core
objectives for which TCN was
established were achieved.
Responding, the Director-General of
ECN, Prof. Eli Bala said that the visit was

PAGE 42
 ECN
aimed at getting to know more about
TCN as one of the major stakeholders
in the power sector and also
monitoring the performance and
challenges associated with its
operations.
The General Manager, Research &
Development, Dr. Tom Inugonum
presented an overview of TCN and its
activities and afterwards led the
visiting team to the Katampe
330/132kV Transmission Sub-
station, Abuja, for first-hand exposure
to the practical aspect of TCN's
operations. The Principal Manager,
System Operations of the Katampe
ECN and TCN team at the 330/132/33kV Katampe Transmission Substation, Abuja
PAGE 43
Sub-station, Engr Thomas Oladeji-Ojo
conducted the DG and his team around
the facility and explained TCN's
operations and challenges from the
substation perspective including its
“...TCN would
always welcome
collaborative efforts
that aim at enhancing
the attainment of it’s
mandate, as well as
improvement in the
power sector generally.”
December 2021/Issue 32
operations in connection with the
National Control Centre (NCC) Osogbo
and its relevance to the supply of
power to Abuja and the nation at large.
Prof. Eli Bala applauded the technical
expertise demonstrated by TCN
engineers who took them on the tour
of the facilities, remarking that such
expertise was a clear attestation of
TCN's capacity to execute its mandate.
He further commended TCN
Management for the milestones
achieved so far, despite the challenges
encountered as it strives to ensure the
full actualization of its mandate.
 ERERA
SIXTEEN (16) POWER PROJECTS AWARDED BY THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT TO BOOST THE NATIONS GRID
F
ederal Government approved sixteen (16) power
projects to be executed in various states of the
federation at one of its weekly Federal Executive Council
(FEC) meeting presided over by Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo
in December 2021.
The breakdown of the projects approved is as follows;
Construction of a 2X60MVA 132/33 KVA substation at
Ikare-Akoko and 2×132 kV Lines Bay Extension at Oke-Agbe,
Ondo State at the cost of $9,9928,912 and N2,037,076,700;
Supply of 65 Hilux vehicle and 20 SUVs nationwide at the cost
of N2,741,787,500 and 1,500 drums of transformer
nationwide at N322,500,000.
19 Sergi transformer explosion and fire protection devices
nationwide at €5,326,663 and N347,629,092 and the
construction of 142kV double circuit line in Ikere-Ijesa-Isu-
Ilupeju towns, Ado-Ekiti at $30,880,393 and
N8,344,898,490 respectively.
Others include the construction of New National Control
ERERA APPOINTS GM REGULATION AND COMPLIANCE OF TCN AS CHAIRMAN
CONSULTATIVE COMMITTEE OF OPERATORS
T he ECOWAS Regional Electricity
Regulatory Authority (ERERA), has
appointed the General Manager
(Regulation and Compliance) of the
Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Mr.
Ali Ahmad Bukar the new Chairman of the
Consultative Committee of the ECOWAS
Regional Electricity Market.
The appointment was made after an election Chairman, Consultative Committee, ERERA
chaired by the Chairman of ECOWAS & GM, Regulation & Compliance, Mr. Ali Bukar Degree in physics from the University of
Regional Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERERA), Prof.
Honore Bogler in Abidjan (Cote d'Ivoive) which held from the
26th to 29th October 2021.
Mr. Bukar was nominated not just as a result of his hard work,
competence in the energy sector and long standing
commitment to the building of the ECOWAS Regional
Electricity Market but also because of the commitment the
Management and Chief Executive of the Transmission
Company of Nigeria (TCN) have towards the ERERA course.
The ECOWAS Regional Electricity Regulatory Authority
(ERERA) is the regional regulator for cross-border electricity
interconnections in West African. The energy protocol and the
PAGE 44
December 2021/Issue 32
Center at Osogbo, Osun State at N1,168,318,638 and the
construction of New National Control Center at Gwagwalada,
FCT, at N1,161,915,480. Also, the supply of 180 of Grounding
Equipment nationwide at €686,043 and N41,378,244.
Approval was equally given for additional work on the 330kV
double line to Mando substation in Kaduna at N893,011,356;
the construction of 2X60MVA, 132/33kV substation at
Ogbomosho and 2X132kV Line Bay Extension at Ganmo
Substation, Ilorin at €5,274,245 and N457,708,341
respectively.
Also, approved are contracts for design, manufacture,
installation and commissioning of 330/132/33 kV
transmission lines at Lekki, Lagos for N2,812,767,499;
Augmentation for the construction of 2X60MVA 132/33kV
substation at Malumfashi and 4X132KV Line Bays at Kankara,
Katsina for N176,517,897 and the supply of 40 primary and 40
secondary injection test sets nationwide at the cost of
€3,865,700 and N212,386,640.
West African Power Poor (WAPP)
Programme, Member States of ECOWAS,
in January 2008 established, the
ECOWAS Regional Electricity Regulatory
Authority (ERERA) by Supplementary
Act A/SA.2/1/08, as a specialized
institution of ECOWAS.
Mr. Ali Bukar Ahmad who hails from Kano
state holds a Bachelor of science (BSc)
Maiduguri. He also has a Masters Degree in Applied Physics
(Atmospheric Electricity) from the University of Jos, and a
Postgraduate Certificate in Environmental Change (Managing
Risks) from the United Nations University. He has attended
several professional training, development courses and
conferences within and outside Nigeria.
As Chairman of ERERA Consultative Committee of the
ECOWAS Regional Electricity Market, his responsibilities
include; To advice ERERA Council on the regional market
development, communications, harmonization of rules,
procedures and bench marking in the West African; provide
modalities for the integration of the third – party countries to
the West African Regional Market, among others.
FRENCH/SHORT STORY
Voulez-vous apprendre
le français?
Do You Want to learn French?
FRENCH
330kV Sous-station
transmission/transport
132kVLigne du
transmission/transport
TCN ont dynamizé les lignes
du transmission
Allon-nous mettre en service - Are we commissioning
les sous-station aujourhui?
Les disjuncteurs sont mal
On a fait les plainfié d'entretien -We undertook scheduled
Les lignes du transmission
sont très mauvais
Les generateur produit
l'electricité
TCN deplace l'electricité
en grande
La societé de distribution
distribue l'electricité à
son clients
Transformateur de tèrre
TCN transmits
l'electricité à WAPP
L'execution du projets
se poursuit
L'engineér de TCN
sonts compétant -
PAGE 45
ENGLISH
-330kV Transmission Substation
-132kV Transmission Line
-TCN has energized the
transmission lines
the substation today?
-The Circuit Breakers are bad
maintenance
-The transmission lines are
very bad
-The generators generate
electricity
-Transmission Company of
Nigeria moves bulk electricity
-The distribution companies
distribute to electricity
consumers
-Earthing transformers
-TCN transmits electricity to
WAPP
-Projects execution are
on-going
-TCN engineers are competent
December 2021/Issue 32
SHORT STORY
Python killed inside 132/33kV Damboa
Transmission Substation, Borno State
Important Lesson in Life
A man sees a snake dying in flames and decides to
free it from the fire. As soon as he catches it, the
snake bites him causing excruciating pain. The man
immediately drops the snake and the reptile falls back
into the burning flames.
At this point the man, looking around, finds a metal
pole and uses it to take the snake from the flames
again, saving its life.
Another man, who had seen what happened,
approaches the man and asks him: "This snake bit
you! Why are you trying to save its life?"
The man replies: "The snake's nature is to bite, but
that won't change my nature, which is to help."
Morale-
Don't change your nature just because someone has
hurt you. Don't lose your goodness of mind, but learn
to act carefully.
 SSAEAC
Ag. MD/CEO TCN, Engr. Dr. Sule Abdulaziz and PG SSAEAC, Comrade Chris Okonkwo
I
n furtherance of its strategy to
promote and sustain industrial
harmony and a conducive working
environment in TCN, the Engr. Dr. Sule
Abdulaziz-led Executive Management
of the Transmission Company of Nigeria
(TCN), held a National Joint Advisory
Committee Meeting with the National
Executive Officers of the Senior Staff
Association of Electricity and Allied
Companies (SSAEAC) at TCN
Headquarters in December 2021.
The TCN helmsman brought the Union
leaders up to speed on some milestone
achievements and efforts of
Management to improve staff welfare
and to sustain the cordial and
harmonious working relationship that
has existed between the Company and
SSAEAC.
According to him, TCN has improved
PAGE 46
tremendously in the area of service
delivery and operations through the
flagship program- Nigeria Electricity
Grid Maintenance Expansion and
Rehabilitation Program (NEGMERP). He
explained that NEGMERP was a strategic
program aimed at expanding the grid
network, sustaining cordial relationship
with stakeholders in the electricity value
chain, especially the Distribution
Companies through the implementation
of Service Level Agreement (SLA)
projects; and paying close attention to
staff capacity development and welfare.
The result of these strategies, he said,
were already impacting positively on the
grid system as evidenced by the
consecutive peak energy/power
delivery to Nigerians recorded in the
first and second quarters of 2021. He
further explained that the decline in
power delivery much later in the year
December 2021/Issue 32
2021, was due to gas shortages at
various gas power plants.
Engr. Abdulaziz further highlighted
efforts by the present Management to
improve staff welfare as well as ensure
better working environment, especially
with the recent commissioning of a new
Regional Office in Port-Harcourt after 12
years of abandonment by previous
administrations. Special attention has
also been given to capacity building as
several training programmes for both
technical and non-technical staff have
been conducted to improve staff
capacity to equip them for the growing
operational challenges and technological
advancement.
Similarly, an enlightenment and
sensitization program for staff on Career
Progression Paths Policy was organized
at the Headquarters and all TCN Regions
to further prepare them for career
advancement. The MD disclosed that
Management has also promoted and
demonstrated commitment to fair and
transparent reward system by promptly
promoting staff that were successful at
the just concluded 2021 Promotion
Exercise.
He assured the Union leaders of
Management's continued resolve to
maintain an open-door policy for cross-
fertilisation of ideas for collective
improvement.
In his response, the President General of
SSAEAC, Comrade Dr. Chris Okonkwo,
commended TCN Management for
establishing industrial harmony in the
Company. He reassured TCN
Management of the Union's commitment
to support the actualization of TCN's
essential mandate, which is to deliver
bulk power efficiently and effectively to
 SSAEAC December 2021/Issue 32

distribution load centers across the nation. In his words “We
are committed to making sure that problems are resolved
with the industrial component coming from us seamlessly to
your Management”
In addition to the update provided by the Ag. MD/CEO and
for which the Union leaders commended the Executive
Management, the meeting also deliberated on other important
issues affecting workers and proffered ways of resolving
them.

TCN Management and Union leaders

Think Twice Be Calm

PAGE 47
SPOTLIGHT
Kaduna Region
Kaduna Regional Office
T
he Kaduna Regional office is located along Kaduna
Airport Road in the Mando area of Kaduna
Metropolis. The Region covers: Kaduna, Zamfara, and
Kebbi States, and a part of Niamey in Niger Republic.
Kaduna Region is made up of Kaduna Sub -Region, Birnin
Kebbi Sub-Region, and Gusau Work Centre. The
substations in the Region include the 330/132/33kV
Kaduna Substation, 132/33kV Kaduna Town Substation,
132/33kV Zaria Substation, 330/132/33kV Birnin Kebbi
Substation, 132/33kV Sokoto Substation, 132/33kV
Funtua Substation, and 132/33kV Talata- Mafara
Substation.
In 1973, the 330/132/33kV Kaduna Substation was
upgraded with a 150MVA 330/132/22kV transformer. In
1983, another 150MVA 330/132/22kV, was
commissioned at the 330/132/33kV Mando Substation in
Kaduna. Again, in 2010, a 90MVA 330/132/33kV was
installed at the Mando Substation. In 2010 one number 150
MVA 330/132/33kV transformer was also commissioned
at the Mando 330/132/33kV Substation in Kaduna by the
PAGE 48
December 2021/Issue 32
By Maimuna Isah-Laden
then President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR. These
upgrades brought the transformer capacity of the Region
to 540MVA.
With the growing population and increasing demand for
power supply in Kaduna State and environs, a 150MVA
330/132/33kV transformer was installed in 2018 under
the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR,
to bring the total capacity of the Mando Transmission
substation to 690MVA.
After the Kano Sub-Region was upgraded and given a
regional status, the Birnin Kebbi Sub-Region was merged
with the Kaduna Region, bringing the total capacity of the
Region to 1020MVA. The Birnin Kebbi Sub-Region has
two 90 MVA 330/132/33kV transformers, installed in
1976 and 2006 respectively, while a 50MVA 132/33kV
transformer was added to the substation in 2013.
Kaduna Region interfaces largely with Kaduna Electricity
Distribution Company (KAEDCO), and also with the Kano
Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO) through the
132/33kV Funtua Substation.
SPOTLIGHT December 2021/Issue 32

The Kaduna Region is jointly managed by the Regional reached 98% completion.
Transmission Manager, Engr. Aminu Haruna under the
Transmission Service Provider (TSP) Unit and Regional Kaduna 330kV Line Construction of new 330kV
Operations Manager, Engr. Akanle. S. Olusola under the 204km DC CCT Quad
Independent System Operators (ISO) Unit of TCN. The region Conductor Transmission line
has a combined staff strength of two hundred and seventy- from Mando to Rimin Zakara,
two (272) persons. Kano State.

Transmission installations including substations, towers, and Zaria 330/132/33kV 1.5km turn in- turn out at the
lines in Kaduna Region have undergone series of upgrades to Substation new Zaria 330/132/33kV
meet the ever-increasing demand of the rapidly growing Substation.
population of Kaduna, Zamfara, and Kebbi States.
Millennium city 10km turn in- turn out at
PROJECTS Substation 330/132/33kV Millennium
TCN has completed a number of projects in Kaduna Region City, Kaduna.
recently. These include:
Jaji 132/33k 1km turn in- turn out at
oThe reconductoring of 132kV double circuit Mando- Substation 132/33kV Jaji Sub- Station.
Kaduna Town T/S to increase its wheeling capacity from
120MW to 240MW. Rigasa Substation 2.5km turn in, turn out at
Rigasa Substation.
o Installation of 2x60MVA, 132/33kV transformer and
associated 3 number feeders in Power Station, Kakuri, Kaduna
State.

o Installation of 150MVA, 330/132/33kV transformer in

330/132/33kV Kaduna Sub-Station in Mando, Kaduna State.

o Installation of 1X60MVA, 132/33kV transformer and

associated 3 number feeders at the Zaria 132/33kV Sub-
Station, Kaduna State..

o Installation of 1X60MVA, 132/33kV transformer in

132/33kV Sub- Station in Gusau, Zamfara State.

o Installation of 1X 60MVA, 132/33kV transformer in Funtua

Sub- Station, Katsina State.

o Installation of 1X40MVA, 132/33kV transformer in Zaria

Sub- Station, Kaduna State.

TCN has a lot of projects that are still ongoing in Kaduna

region to boost wheeling capacity. These projects include:

LOCATION PROJECT
Kaduna 330/132/33kV The construction of 330kV
double circuit line from
Kaduna to Jos. The project
has reached 90% completion
stage.

Kudenda Power Station; Construction of 132kV

double circuit line from
Kudenda power station
Mando. The project has
reached 75% completion.
Kaduna 330/132/33kV Construction of132kV bay
Substation Extension. The project has
Kaduna – Jos 330kV double circuit transmission line

PAGE 49
SPOTLIGHT-KADUNA REGION December 2021/Issue 32

ENCROACHMENT
There are several cases of encroachment on transmission
lines Right of Way (RoW) in areas such as Barakallahu, Rigasa,
and many other communities within the Region. This has
continued despite several meetings with community leaders
to draw attention to the inherent dangers of erecting
structures under high tension power lines.

Most of the culprits claim to be the owners of the land while

others simply say that they have nowhere else to go. This is in
spite of the fact that community leaders and original
landowners were adequately compensated before the
erection of transmission structures on the affected areas. Engr. Aminu Haruna, RTM, Kaduna Region

IN-HOUSE CAPACITY
TCN engineers in Kaduna Region have installed/repaired
several transformers in the Region. Some of the recent
installations include the 60MVA 132/33kV transformer in
Gusau Substation, Zamfara State, installation of a 60 MVA
132/33kV transformer in Funtua Sub-Station, Katsina State,
installation of 40MVA 132/33kV transformer in Zaria Sub-
Station, Kaduna State, among others.

Other jobs carried out by the Region are:

Replacement of shattered 330kV Shiroro 1 red phase Circuit
Breaker, installation of 110Volt and 50Volt direct current Engr. Akanle. S. Olusola, ROM, Kaduna Region
battery banks, resuscitation of burnt 60MVA 132/33kV
transformer, and Installation of 132kV Current Transformer
on 60MVA 132/33kV transformer at Mando Substation, Transfer of protection from old to the new control room at
Kaduna. Gusau.

Replacement of 33kV Circuit Breaker on 33kV Hanwa feeder,
and installation of a new set of 33kV Voltage Transformer on
40MVA 132/33kV transformer at Zaria Substation, Zaria.
Also, installation of a new protection and control panel for 60
MVA 132/33kV transformer at Kaduna Town Substation.
Installation of 110volt Direct Current battery bank at the
power station and installation of 132kV Circuit Breaker on
150MVA 330/132kV transformer at Birnin Kebbi Substation
among others.

Two things prevent

us from happiness;
being in the past and
observing others in envy.

PAGE 50
 7000MW
I
n the bid to attain 7000MW
electricity in the grid, the Federal
Government has through the
Presidential Power Initiative (PPI)
commenced the expansion and
upgrade of the nation's transmission
and distribution critical infrastructure.
The Honourable Minister of Power,
Engr. Abubakar Aliyu FNSE made this
known while marking his first 50days in
office, on Wednesday, 27th October
2021, in Abuja.
According to him, the first phase of the
PPI is the upgrading and expansion of
vital infrastructure of the Transmission
Company of Nigeria (TCN) and the
Distribution Companies (DisCos) to
achieve the 7,000MW target, adding
that the selected contractors would
soon be contacted officially so that
work on the identified projects could
commence.
The Minister disclosed that the Ministry
of Power would focus on addressing
the issue of liquidity in the NESI,
improving services in terms of hours of
supply, billing transparency and
accuracy, and wider access to
electricity while bringing consumer,
operator and investor confidence back
to the sector to attract foreign and
local investment. He also gave an
PAGE 51
FG TARGETS ADDITIONAL
AS IT EXPANDS AND
UPGRADES CRITICAL
INFRASTRUCTURE
update on some projects that have
recently come on stream or on-going
to boost generation capacity.
In his words, “Kashimbilla 40MW
power station has already started
generating power into the national grid.
Gurara phase 2 being developed in
partnership with the Ministry of Water
Resources will soon be ready to deliver
30MW to the grid. Zungeru
Hydroelectric Power Project is
progressing towards completion next
year to deliver another 700MW of
renewable power.
He also stated that the Katsina wind
farm, with a full capacity of 10MW, is
already generating and feeding part of
its capacity to the grid. The Dadin Kowa
40MW Power Station has also started
generating power into the national grid
under a concession arrangement with a
private sector investor while
outstanding regulatory and Power
Purchase Agreement issues were
being addressed.
The Mambilla Hydroelectric Power
Project was contracted in 2017. The
Minister disclosed that discussions
aimed at resolving encumbrances
preventing the full take-off of the
project were ongoing. TCN's
Transmission Rehabilitation and
December 2021/Issue 32
7000MW
TRANSMISSION
By Joy Egbase
Expansion Programme funded by
various multilateral financial institutions
to ensure adequacy and stability of the
national grid are part of systematic
implementation of the Presidential
Power Initiative (PPI) of this
administration, he said.
Engr. Aliyu further stated that
Government was reinvigorating
important policies and regulations,
especially the Eligible Customers and
related regulations that would move
the electricity industry from the
present interim commercial structure
to full commercial structure in
compliance with sections 25 and 26 of
the Electric Power Sector Reform Act
2015, whereby consumers contract for
better services directly with willing
GenCos and service providers that are
ready to make new investments to
deliver quality services.
He also remarked that the Nigerian
Electrification Roadmap (NER) was a
partnership aimed at expanding
Nigeria's electricity generation
capacity from the current average
output of 4,500MW to 25,000MW. He
expressed optimism that NER will
succeed because its partners, including
Siemens were reputable power
companies.
PENCOM
L-R, GM (IR), Mr. Chuks Nnaji, Mr. Olushola Aiyenuyo of PENCOM, and GM (HR&CS), TSP, Mr. Dahiru Gabdo
TCN PARTNERS PENCOM, PFAs TO
SENSITIZE STAFF ON CONTRIBUTORY
PENSION SCHEME
T
he Transmission Company of
Nigeria (TCN), in collaboration
with the National Pension
Commission (PENCOM) and some
Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs),
have sensitized staff on the significance
of the contributory pension scheme.
The sensitization was the object of an
interactive session organized by the
Industrial Relations Department of TCN,
on Thursday, 5th November 2021, at The
TCN Corporate Headquarters, Abuja,
and had in attendance representatives
from PENCOM, PFAs, and TCN staff
from Corporate Headquarters and
Abuja Region.
In his opening remarks, the Executive
Director, Human Resources and
Corporate Services (HR&CS), Barrister
Justin Ishaya Dodo who was
represented by the General Manager,
PAGE 52
By Gabriel Gandu
Human Resources, TSP, Mr. Dahiru
Gabdo, commended the initiative of the
Industrial Relations (IR) Department,
stating that the interactive forum would
help to create better understanding
about the pension scheme, address
loopholes and concerns raised by staff
in the past.
it was important for
all to understand how
their money was
being used and what
they should expect
to be paid when they
exit the Company to
enable them plan
their retirement
properly.
December 2021/Issue 32
Mr. Gabdo thanked the representatives
of PENCOM and PFAs for honoring the
invitation, noting that the essence of the
contributory scheme would only be
realized if employees can access their
funds when needed, especially at the
time of retirement. He urged the
experts to be explicit in explaining the
entire Retirement Savings Account
(RSA) process and to answer all
questions raised by staff during the
session.
On his part, the General Manager,
Industrial Relations, Mr. Chuks Nnaji
who commended staff for their
enthusiastic participation, said that it
was important for all to understand how
their money was being used and what
they should expect to be paid when
they exit the Company to enable them
plan their retirement properly.
Management he added was working
tirelessly to address complaints and
concerns raised in the past by staff
regarding the RSA.
''The officials from PENCOM will tell us
what the contributory pension scheme
is, the Finance experts will also tell us the
deviations, while the PFAs will respond
to the issues that may arise, and we
invited an insurance company to
equally address us on Annuity, so it's a
full package'' he said.
PENCOM
In his presentation, PENCOM
representative, Mr. Bala Babangida,
Head, Compliance & Enforcement,
PENCOM, who was represented by Mr.
Olushola Aiyenuyo gave an overview
of the Contributory Pension Scheme
from the Regulator's perspective and
assured contributors who had been
contributing before the Pension
Reform Act of 2004, of the safety and
easy accessibility of their funds.
''I'm sure some of us were already
working before the commencement of
the Pension Reform Act of 2004.
Those that worked in the private
sector may have contributed to the
National Providence Fund (NPF) or the
Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund
(NSITF) scheme. It is important to
assure you that your contributions are
safe and you can access them. The
TCN staff during the sensitization programme
PAGE 53
system also recognizes that some
people might have transited from the
private sector to the public sector'', he
said.
Mr. Olushola, who noted that PENCOM
had made the registration process less
cumbersome, with the introduction of
a web-based application, explained
that an employee could only access
25% of his/her funds when
unemployed for 4 months and 50%
when one has attained the retirement
age.
He further explained that with the
opening of the transfer window where
an RSA account holder could move
from one PFA to another, employees
who weren't comfortable with the
services of a PFA, could simply transfer
to a new one.
December 2021/Issue 32
Mr. Emmmanuel Ojo from First Bank
Insurance who spoke on the different
retirement plans, distinguished
between the Programmed Withdrawal
and Annuity plans, noting that the
programmed withdrawal is a monthly
withdrawal plan that is based on
expected life span. The plan would
serve the beneficiary for life. Annuity
by insurance companies is calculated
to serve the beneficiary for 10 years.
The annuity payout is much higher than
the programmed withdrawal. During
the first 10 years, of draw down on the
Annuity programme, if death occurs,
the balance of the Annuity will be
transferred to a named beneficiary.
After 10 years there is no balance for
the beneficiary to enjoy as the
guarantee period which was five years
is now ten (10) years, he said.
FEATURES December 2021/Issue 32

The Five States of System Operation

By Dr. Inugonum Thomas

Types of Stabilities
1. Power System Stability
2. Rotor Angle Stability
3. Voltage Stability

Ø Power System Stability:

This is the ability of an Electrical System to remain intact
within the Operating Boundaries of the System after a shock

F
or a robust network with N-1 and N-2 criteria, we
believe that for such a system the above five states of
operation can be practiced whilst for N-0 and N-1, it will
be practically difficult to operate these five states easily, unless
with very good and experienced Operation Engineers, just like
the people we have at NCC, Osogbo.
The five Operating States of the Power System are:
v Normal State
v Alert State
v Emergency State
v In-extremis or Extreme State
v Restoration or Restorative State
VOLTAGE CONTROL RANGES
The System Operator shall endeavor to control the different
bus-bar voltages to be within the Voltage Control ranges
specified in the table below:
or disturbance within the network which could be physical
such as a short circuit or a load rejected or thrown-off.
Ø Rotor Angle Stability:
The synchronous machines of an interconnected power
system can remain in synchronism after being subjected to a
disturbance. This has to do with the increasing angular swing
of a generator thus, leading to throwing - off the generator
out of synchronism.
This stability problem results in the generator bus section of
an interconnected supply. Mostly when the mechanical and
the electromagnetic torque equilibrium is disturbed and
should be restored.
Ø Voltage Stability:
Voltage Stability is the ability of a system to maintain a stable
voltage at all buses in the System after a disturbance. The
Stability depends on the ability of the system to restore to
equilibrium the supply and demand.

The instability that can occur could be from a progressive

rise or fall of voltages within the buses caused by a fault
tripping of the transmission lines or loss of load in an area.
This can lead to loss of some generator's synchronism etc.

Ø Types of reserves
We have the following Reserves:
· System Reserve
· Operating Reserve
· Spinning Reserve
· Required System Reserve
· Capacity Reserve
· Peak Demand Reserve

PAGE 54
FEATURES
Five Operating States
The five Operating States of the Power System includes the
following:
· Normal State
· Alert State
· Emergency State
· In-extremis or Extreme State
· Restoration or Restorative State
The Normal State:
For a Stable System or a System that is operating with Stability,
the System Parameters are said to be within the Operating
range of the system and no Equipment, either the Lines or the
Transformers are overloaded, the System is said to be Secured
and it can withstand a major contingency without violating its
normal operating constraints.
In our system, the frequency range is 50Hz ±2.5% whilst the
operating range is 49.5Hz and 50.5Hz. The frequency range
stands at ±2.5% which is 47.5Hz and 52.5Hz.
The operating range is considered as the critical operating
frequency because once the frequency excursion goes
beyond 49.2Hz, the Operating Engineer starts watching to
establish stability and return the system as quickly as possible.
I. He does this by using some tools such as an under-
frequency relay to remove some loads automatically and
ensure that the system falls back to a stable and normal
state.
II. Whenever there is a frequency excursion or increase, the
normal state parameters shift to a new parameter position
which is the next state known as Alert State.
III. Every operating Engineer becomes alert until the system
goes back to normalcy by the Operator's action.
The Alert State:
In this state, the operation Engineer has to focus on the system
and he should alert the generators to be on standby with their
reserve margin on hot barring as well as those on cold barring.
In the Alert State, there are possibilities of losing one
Line/Circuit or Substation equipment which is an indication of
a fault in the system and whenever a fault occurs in the
network it is required that the relays sees it and instruct the
circuit breaker to open quickly, that is instantaneous. This is to
enable the faulty part to be separated from the healthy
network.
I. Sometimes it is restored automatically if it is a wind storm
or a flash-over resulting from a bird or rodent passing
through the arching horn of the transformer insulators or
the lighting arrestor's arching horn.
II. Sometimes it could be overgrown trees.
PAGE 55
December 2021/Issue 32
III. In a situation whereby the fault (N-1) persists thus leading
to a further voltage drop and frequency excursion, the Alert
State has entered the Emergency State. In this state, it is
possible even with N-2 for a network that is robust and
with adequate generation and enough transmission lines to
be returned to the Alert State and subsequently back to the
Normal State.
IV. In the Alert State, it is assumed that the security level is
further threatened and it has fallen below a certain limit
of adequacy, this is always during severe weather of
thunderstorms and rain. Also in this state, the system
parameters are still under the operating range but it is at
the verge of the limits.
V. If a major contingency occurs and the situation lasts for a
longer time, such as losing two pieces of equipment and
with a large load rejection, this will lead to over-
frequency because the generator rotor will over speed
above the normal speed of the machine. This instability
leads to the Emergency State.
Emergency State:
In the Emergency State, the voltages are below acceptable
limits of -15% for 330kV and -10 for 132kV i.e. 280.5kV and
118kV respectively. In this situation of low voltage, it is clear
that the frequency is equally low and it calls for the operating
Engineer to initiate some control measures to restore the
network to the Alert State by carrying out Load Shedding. The
low voltage observed was because the network was
overloaded, the under-frequency may not be activated
automatically but if it is active, it will initiate the load shedding
immediately.
The operating Engineer can take a second initiative by asking
stations outside the National Control Center through the
telephone while watching the response of the system to load
shed some packets or bulk loads to enable the system to
recover. He can go into the third initiative by trying to improve
the voltage by operating the transformer's tap changer from
the voltage it was to a new higher voltage. This is done from
the Control room automatically. The transformer tap changer is
operated for a higher voltage to be injected to sustain the
network and return it to the Alert State and the Normal State.
I. A further initiative and strategy shall be to instruct the
Area control centers to start the process of islanding to
help sectionalize the grid and narrow the fault to a
particular area.
II. In this Emergency State, a good operator has increased his
voltage by tap changing the transformer while waiting for
the instruction he gave to the generator on hot barring to
synchronize. This is another initiative to increase the
generated voltage.
III. Note that at this moment the system Operator has started
incurring additional operating costs to save the system to
FEATURES
ensure that the system progresses from the Alert State to
the Normal state.
IV. Ancillary Services were provided and the System
Operator must pay the generator that he called for
support and synchronization. It will also be noted that
even when the system Operator has succeeded in
getting the system back to the Alert State and the
generator called to synchronize could not due to one
reason or the other, the system could go back to In-
extreme State.
V. in this state, it becomes difficult for the system to be
saved. One of such reasons could be single phasing or
loss of synchronization or pole discordance when the
generator circuit breaker is trying to latch in the 3 phases
female sockets in the CB cubicle.
VI. for the system to be sustained after synchronizing
successfully. We can also initiate another stage by
switching on the power system stabilizer to be able to
smooth out the ripples created by the transient fault.
VII. As a result of not being able to return the system to the
Alert State. The system will cascade and enter the
extreme case or state where it will eventually collapse.
EXTREME STATE:
In this state, it is assumed that all the self-healing of the
system and all control actions deployed to the system by the
Operator at the Emergency State failed, the system will
cascade and with outages of the other generators that will be
dragged and eventually shut down (blackout) for a major part
of the system if we can Island the other part of the network
while the system is struggling, trying to drag other generators
far away.
I. From the active Island, we can start initiating a restoration
process.
II. It will also be good to note that some generators in the
network shall be given the responsibility to perform Slack
buses responsibility in ensuring that enough Reactive
Power balance is provided into the network. Therefore, if
we have three islands as I have suggested, such as in the
North West and North East should have Kainji or Shiroro
perform slack bus. In the South West-Egbin or
Olorunshogo whilst South-South & South East- Delta or
Afam can perform it.
III. It is usually Generator with the capability of providing the
Grid with enough reactive power.
RESTORATIVE STATE:
This State represents a condition of the operation
initiating some control actions to restore the system and
PAGE 56
December 2021/Issue 32
reconnect all the facilities and loads. The system at this
state can only be restored to the Alert or Normal State
depending on the new system parameters or conditions.
I. In this state, the system is restored to the Alert using the
under-frequency to monitor the bulk load restoration in
case the system condition is not stable. Thus, loads are
shed while the system is still in the Alert State.
II. The system could be restored by supplying power from
healthy islands whose parameters are still within the
Normal State operating parameters.
III. The system could also be restored by the system
operator requesting ancillary service from any of the
generators that have a healthy black start.
IV. This supply is still at the alert state because the line has to
be subjected to charging and allow the generators
interconnected to use it to start their machines.
Conclusion.
In Conclusion, we can classify the System in these five states
because, at every stage, the Operator should be able to
identify the types of control action he will deploy to save the
System. If he is a very experienced Operator, he will develop
more Control Strategies in other to save the system from
collapse. Also, it will be noted that each of the States of the
System has a level of control that is self-healing that it can
apply to remain stable to assist the Operator in carrying out
effective restoration action.
Note; we can deploy the use of black start generators to black
start other generators and bring them back to the infinite bus
bar. An electrical bus that is active at a particular voltage level
is an infinity bus because it can only accept the same voltage,
so we black start. In the daytime, the Solar PV Cells can
provide this service, while at night we deploy diesel
generators or if we have a CSP- Concentrated Solar PV
Spherical Mirror.
Operating Criteria for Power System Stability:
We can design a Power System to be capable of withstanding
a wide range of disturbances. It is therefore essential that a
System is designed and operated so that probable
contingencies can be sustained with no loss of load and
cascading outages.
Design and operating criteria play an important role in
preventing major system disturbances following severe
contingencies. Normally designed contingencies are N-1, N-
2. They have a significant probability of occurring given the
large elements that make up the Power System.
PH REGION December 2021/Issue 32

GM PH Commends TCN Management for

Transformational Projects in Port Harcourt Region

By Ogechukwu Uzor

of the respective units in Afam 5, 90% completion of Afam 4,

the Region, stated that the
present Management has
worked to ensure a
conducive working
environment for staff by
completing and
commissioning the PH
Regional Office, after 12
years of abandonment by
successive administrations.
According to him, the
befitting edifice which is
RTM, PortHarcourt, Engr. D. O. Udofia,
the pride of the Region, has
rehabilitation of 75MX Reactor and
150MW 330/132/33kV power
transformer at Adiaba to improve
voltage control as well as increase
capacity of facilities in the Calabar Sub-
region respectively.
Others are the creation of Uyo Work
Centre from Calabar Sub-region which
has alleviated the suffering of staff who
have had to commute between Calabar,
Eket, Ikot Abasi, and Ikot Ekpene to
work, through very bad roads.

T
he Management of TCN under the
visionary leadership of Engr. Dr.
Sule Abdulaziz has been
commended for the unprecedented
transformation of the Port Harcourt
Region and its affiliate units. The
commendation was made by the
General Manager for the Region, Engr. D.
O. Udofia, during his tour of Afam and
Calabar sub-regions between
November 9th and 22nd, 2021 to assess
substations operations and projects
within his Port-Harcourt (PH) Region.
Mr. Udofia, during his meeting with staff
provided a conducive
working environment for both the
Independent System Operator (ISO)
and Transmission Service Provider
(TSP), as well as accommodated every
office in the region under the same roof,
making for a more efficient discharge of
duty.
Engr. Udofia enumerated other projects
which have been rehabilitated or
completed by the Engr. Abdulaziz-led
Management to include the completion
of Afam Transmission Substation,
rehabilitation of the Control Room at
He noted that these improvements have
motivated staff to perform optimally,
citing the example of Engr. Bello Nasir,
the AGM of Calabar Sub Region, who has
by dint of hard work and exceptional
performance drastically reduced
cascaded tripping in the Region from
about 28 to 6 within one week. He also
used the occasion to explain to staff the
five-fold focus of his administration for
the Region, which includes teamwork,
dedication, respect, and determination
to excel, and urged them to work with
the regional management to actualize
the five-fold goal.

Newly Constructed Afam 5 Control Room New PortHarcourt Regional Office

PAGE 57
PHOTO SPEAK December 2021/Issue 32

Photo Speak

Port-Harcourt Regional office hosts NUEE 4th Quarterly Regional Advisory Council Meeting.

Students of Nigerian Defence Academy on an excursion to Mando Transmission Substation, Kaduna State

Cyber Security Awareness training for staff of ICT-ISO, in Lagos

PAGE 58
MOVING ON December 2021/Issue 32

Retirement

Engr. Idris Alim, Regional Transmission Manager,

Hajiya Maryam Madugu, General Manager, (F&A) ISO
Port-Harcourt Region

Engr. Haruna Mamman Runka, Asst. General Manager, Engr. Ajao Olusola Adesina, Principal Manager,
(Project Mgr. AFDB) PIU (Project Acct. AFDB) PIU

Mr Baiyewu Taiwo Ayodeji, Principal Manager, Mr Lawal Waheed Kayode Senior Manager, (Electrical),
(Lines), Lagos Region Papalanto SubRegion.

Mr. Julius Femi, Senior Manager, (F&A) PortHarcourt Region Mr. Danladi Gyang, Officer II (MVD) Jos Sub Region

PAGE 59
LEISURE
Electricity is transient, it is a product that is addictive, if
it is not used when produced, it is lost or dissipates as
heat.
Did you know that electricity plays a role in the way
your heart beats? Electricity causes muscle cells in the
heart to contract. Electrocardiogram (ECG) machines,
used by medical professionals, measure the electricity
going through the heart. As the heart beats in a healthy
person, the ECG machine displays a line moving across
the screen with regular spikes.
STRANGE BUT TRUE
·In the 1400s a law was outlined in England that a man
was allowed to beat his wife with a stick no thicker than
his thumb. Hence, we have 'the rule of thumb.’
Many years ago in Scotland, a new game was invented.
It was ruled 'Gentlemen Only ladies Forbidden'... and
thus the word GOLF entered into the English language.
Each king in a deck of playing cards represents a great
king from history:
o Spades - King David,
o Hearts - Charlemagne,
o Clubs -Alexander the Great,
o Diamonds - Julius Caesar
In Shakespeare's time, mattresses were secured on bed
frames by ropes. When you pulled on the ropes the
mattress tightened, making the bed firmer to sleep on.
Hence the phrase..... 'Goodnight, sleep tight.’
It was the accepted practice in Babylon 4,000 years
ago that for a month after the wedding, the bride's
father would supply his son-in-law with all the mead he
could drink. Mead is a honey beer and because their
calendar was lunar-based, this period was called the
honey month, which we know today as the
honeymoon.
PAGE 60
December 2021/Issue 32
Electric fields work in a similar way to gravity.
Whereas gravity always attracts, electric fields can
either attract or repel.
Benjamin Franklin carried out extensive electricity
research in the 18th century, inventing the lightning rod
amongst his many discoveries. In the event of a
lightning strike, the lightning rod conducts the strike-
through a grounded wire, protecting the building
In English pubs, ale is ordered by pints and quarts... so in
old England, when customers got unruly, the bartender
would yell at them 'Mind your pints and quarts, and
settle down. This gave rise to the phrase 'mind your P's
and Q's’.
Many years ago in England, pub frequenters had a
whistle baked into the rim or handle of their ceramic
cups. When they needed a refill, they used the whistle to
get some service. Hence the phrase, 'Wet your whistle'
is the phrase inspired by this practice
In 1696, William III of England introduced a property
tax that required those living in houses with more than
six windows to pay a levy. To avoid the tax, house
owners would brick up all windows except six.
(The Window Tax lasted until 1851, and older houses
with bricked-up windows are still a common sight in
the U.K.) As the bricked-up windows prevented some
rooms from receiving any sunlight, the tax was referred
to as “daylight robbery”!
Quite interesting, the origin of these phrases
Culled from the net
SOCIALS
Ag. MD/CEO TCN, Engr. Sule Abdulaziz, in a group
photograph with staff of Public Affairs
Mrs Zainab Aliyu, Principal Manager (HSE) on her conferment as
the 29th President of Inner Wheel Club of Garki
Barrister Mohammed Adama, Senior Manager (Legal) ISO,
on her Conferment as Fellow of the Institute of Chartered
Mediators & Conciliators of Nigeria {ICMC}, and the Institute
of Leadership & Governance USA - USA
PAGE 61
December 2021/Issue 32
TCN, KEDCO HOST NOVELTY
MATCH TO FOSTER SMOOTH
WORKING RELATIONSHIP
By Gabriel Gandu
A
s part of efforts to nurture a good working
relationship between the two organizations, the
Kano Region of the Transmission Company of
Nigeria (TCN), and Kano Electricity Distribution Company
(KEDCO), have organized a novelty football match.
The match took place at the Adamu Mu'azu Stadium, at
the new site of Bayero University, Kano State, on
th
Wednesday 20 October 2021, with both teams
displaying good football artistry to the admiration of
spectators.
In his remarks, the Regional Transmission Manager
(RTM), Kano Region, Engr. Badamasi Adamu said that
football promotes synergy and admonished staff to
engage in healthy lifestyles.
The KEDCO Chief Coach, Lawan Wada on his part said that
KEDCO would continue to harness ways to strengthen
the relationship between the staff of both organizations.
The football match attracted a large turnout of spectators
from the general public and staff of both companies.
Group photograph of TCN and KEDCO team
COMMITMENTS December 2021/Issue 32

Wedding
Galore

Engr. Akinbode Sunday, AM (PC&M), Mr. Bam Usung, Officer II (System Lines),
Egbin Sub Region and his wife Calabar Sub Region and his wife

Mr Musa Moh’d Bori, Officer II (PC&M), Mr Dauda Auwal, Officer II (PC&M),

Bauchi Region and his wife Jos Sub-Region and his wife

Mr Davou Chuwang, Officer II (PC&M), Mr Elisha Dangiwa, Staff I (MVD),

Jos Sub-Region and his wife and his wife

PAGE 62
FEATURES December 2021/Issue 32

TOWER FOUNDATION
DESIGN METHODOLOGY
INCLUDING RIVER CROSSING
A technical paper presentation by
Engr. Dele Shittu

TOWER FOUNDATION DESIGN OVERVIEW TYPES OF FOUNDATION FOR TOWERS

Towers are tall structures that are built for various purposes
such as support for communication equipment, electricity
transmission, water storage, silos, security watch, aesthetics,
etc. All such structures are required to be firmly supported on
the ground in other to enable desired functionality. Foundation
of any structure plays an important role in the safety and
satisfactory performance of the structure as it transmits
mechanical loads of the electrical transmission system to earth.
A transmission structure without a sound and safe foundation
cannot perform the functions for which it has been designed.
Tower foundations in various types of soils have to be
designed to suit particular types of soil conditions. In addition
to foundations of normal towers, there are situations where
considering techno-economical aspect for special towers are
required for river crossing which may be located either on the
bank of the river, mid-stream or both. In such situations, a pile
foundation may be provided.
The foundation of towers is normally subjected to various
forces which have to be taken into consideration in the course
of design. Types of foundation include: pile foundation,
anchored foundation, and guyed foundation.
FOUNDATION DESIGN PHILOSOPHY
Stability Analysis of Transmission Tower Foundation:
In addition to the strength and design, stability analysis of the
foundation shall be done to check the possibility of failure by
overturning, sliding, and tilting of foundation, compression or
downward thrust, tension or uplift, lateral forces of side thrusts
of both transverse and longitudinal directions, buoyancy.
The base slab of the foundation shall be designed and additional
moments developed, due to the centricity of the loads. The
additional weight of and the full weight of the concrete above
ground level in the footing and embedded steel parts also
needs to be taken into account adding to the down-thrust.

PAGE 63
FEATURES December 2021/Issue 32

FORCES ON TOWER FOUNDATION

Active forces include Tower reactions, Soil Backfill, Chimney
weight, Pad weight. Moments Include Passive forces including
bearing forces from the soil, soil passive pressure, chimney
weight, and pad weight

Foundation General Geometry Resistance Against Uplift of

Transmission Tower Foundation
- The uplift loads shall be assumed to be resisted by the
weight of the earth in an inverted frustum of a pyramid
of the earth whose sides make an angle equal to the
angle of repose of the earth with the vertical in average
soil.
- The weight of concrete embedded in the earth and that
above the ground level shall also be considered for
resisting the uplift. In a case where the frustum of the
earth pyramid of two adjoining legs overlaps each other,
the earth frustum shall be assumed to be truncated by a
vertical plane passing through the centerline of the
tower base.
- For foundations, the factor of safety shall be 3.0 for
normal conditions and 2.0 for broken wire conditions.

Resistance Against Down Thrust of Transmission Tower

Foundation
- The following load combinations shall be resisted by the
bearing strength of the soil: The down thrust loads
combined with an additional weight of the concrete
above the earth are assumed to be acting on the total
area of the bottom of the footing. The movement is due
to side thrust forces at the bottom of the footing. The
structural design of the base slab shall be developed for
the above load combination.
GROUNDING MATERIALS AND COUNTERPOISE
Grounding and counterpoise shall be of 7/3.25mm galvanized
steel ground wire. The grounding set for towers comprises four
(4) numbers of 30m each ground wire with a clamp suitable for
connection to the tower legs to give a low electrical resistance of
not more than 10 ohms between the structures and ground.
1.5km 7/3.25mnm galvanized steel ground wire buried in the soil
will be run continuously from the terminal tower along the
centerline on either end.
Analysis and Design Procedures
- Model foundation, Obtain foundation loads, Collect
geotechnical data, Concrete data, Reinforcement data,
Run analysis, design and carry out checks, Generate
construction drawings.
Protection against erosion
- Adequate measures shall be taken to prevent the soil
surrounding the tower footings and the entire
foundation from being eroded by scouring in surface
run-of stormwater. If necessary, approved aprons shall
be provided to the surrounding grounds. If required,
tower foundations sited close to major roads shall be
protected with reinforced concrete raff barriers as
approved by the Engineer.
River Crossing Foundation Design Criteria
As a result of the nature of soil by river banks and lateral
forces imposed by the height of river crossing towers, it is
common to adopt pile foundations for river crossing towers.
With the usual criteria of analysis, the drilled caisson is
designed to withstand resistance to Uplift, Resistance to
Compression, Resistance to Bending.
Occasional Flooding Protection
- Where occasional flooding problems are expected,
protection of steel structures/towers has to be
guaranteed with a total extension of cap/chimney
above ground level.
- In addition, a foundation should be designed to
withstand all pressure loads due to streamflow. In
particular, where the clear distance between vertical
piles is restricted, it has been reasonably considered that
debris Iike stock trees can completely obstruct water
passage.
- Water pressure has to be evaluated with the relevant
formula.
- To avoid problems of concrete erosion, a permanent
steel casing has to be adopted.
- Also considering possible scouring, the steel casing has
to be considered embedded in the soil for, at least, 6
meters from the actual level of the soil.

PAGE 64
TERMS December 2021/Issue 32

Transmission Terms

Conservator Tank – An oil preservation system in which the oil
in the main rank tank is isolated from the atmosphere over the
certified temperature range, by means of an auxiliary tank
partly shed with oil and connected to the completely shed
main tank.
Oil Temperature/Pressure Gauges – These are used for
monitoring the internal characteristics of the transformer
especially its windings. These gauges help the operator know
the level of temperature (oil & winding). This also serves as an
alarm for effective monitoring of the transformer windings.

System Ground Terminal – System ground terminals in a
power transformer are usually present whenever the
connection type of the transformer windings has wye in it, this
terminal can be found in line with the main terminal of the
transformer.
Drain Valve – This is usually found at the bottom part of the
transformer tank. Drain valves are used whenever oil
replacement is necessary. Through this valve, the replacement
of oil in all shed transformer can be easily done simply by
opening this faucet- like valve.
Dehydrating Breather – Dehydrating breathers are used to
prevent the normal moisture in the oil from coming in contact
with the oil in the electrical equipment as the load or
temperature changes. This reduces the degeneration of the oil
and helps maintain its insulation capability. When used with a
conservator system and a rubber air cell, it reduces moisture.
Some breathers are designed for sealed tank transformers and
breathe only at preselling pressure levels.
Bushing Current Transformer – Modern transformer
construction now includes bushing current transformers.
These are usually found around the transformer terminals
which can be used for metering and relaying purposes. Its
terminals are found in the control panels attached to the
transformer.
Control Panel – This houses all the transformer's monitoring
devices, terminals and auxiliary devices, including the terminals
of the bushing, current transformers and cooling fans. Control
panels are very useful especially when a remote control house
needs to be constructed, they serve as connection panel.
Surge Arrester – This type of arrester is placed directly before
and after the transformer terminals to minimize exposure to
the transformer. Like any other surge arrester, its purpose is to
clip sudden voltage surge that can be damaging to the winding
of the transformer.

Engr. Joseph Lawrence, Lawal Usman Officer I (stores), Ikechi Enwereji, Officer III (LMD),
AGM ( Substation) CHQ Kaduna Sub-Region Aba Sub Region

When the curtain falls and loved ones are taken away
permanently, we truly understand
what their presence meant to us.
Adieu!

PAGE 65

OTA
T
he Ota 132kV/33kV Substation was commissioned
in 2001 as a 100MVA substation with 1X40MVA
132/33kV power transformer identified as T1 and
1x60MVA 132/33kV power transformer identified as T2
at 132/33kV level. The substation is fed from Ota/Ikeja
West 132kV Double Circuit (DC) transmission line whose
source is the Ikeja West 330/132/33kV Transmission
Substation. The substation is located in Ijagba-Ota, close to
Obasanjo Farms in Ado-Odo Ota Local Government Area
of Ogun State.
Because of its strategic position, the substation transmits
power at 132kV level to Ogba 132/33kV Substation,
Papalanto 132/33kV Substation, old Abeokuta 132/33kV
Substation, and the New Abeokuta 132kV Substation.
The Substation was commissioned with four (4)
transmission lines which are the Ikeja West 132kV lines 1
and 2, Ogba and Papalanto 132kV lines.
PAGE 66
December 2021/Issue 32
In 2011, a 40MVA 132/33kV Mobitra transformer was
installed and commissioned by TCN Engineers to increase
the substation load-carrying capacity. Similarly, a 60MVA
132/33kV power transformer was installed and
commissioned by NDPHC and supervised by TCN Engineers
in 2019. Consequently, the substation capacity then
increased from 100MVA (80MW) to 200MVA (160MW)
still at 132/33kV level.
To transmit reliable and stable power to the neighboring
substations namely Papalanto, old and new Abeokuta
132/33kV substations, new Ota/Papalanto 132kV Double
Circuits transmission lines were commissioned in 2021.
Other projects to increase the substation transmitting
capacity are underway. The substation equally supplies
Ijagba, Itele, Lafenwa, Obasanjo farms, and Sango/Ota
complex areas of Ogun state and Amje/Ijaye in Lagos
State.
SLA
The Market Rules in Relation to
Service Level Agreement(SLA)
MARKET RULES
"Market Rules" is a regulatory instrument designed to
establish and govern efficient, competitive, transparent and
reliable market for the sale and purchase of wholesale
electricity and Ancillary Services in the Nigerian Electricity
Supply Industry as approved by the President.
Market Rules Set out responsibilities of Market Participants,
including the Transmission Service Provider (TSP), System
Operator (SO), Market Operator (MO) in trading, co-
ordination, dispatch and contract nomination, pricing of
imbalances, ancillary services, metering, settlement and
payments.
Specifically the Market Rules :
o Set out the operation and pricing system of the balancing
mechanism
o Establish a market governance mechanism and a market
monitoring system
o Provide a framework for resolution of disputes amongst
TSP, MO, SO and Participants on matters relating to the
Market Rules & Grid Code.
o Provide an efficient and transparent process for
amending the Market Rules and the Grid Code.
Section 26 (3) of the EPSR Act provides as follows:
In respect of markets for electricity and ancillary services, the
Market Rules may include provisions:
(a) Governing the making and publication of the
Market Rules
(b) Specifying procedures for settlement of
payment among different participants
(c) Authorizing and g o v e r n i n g t h e m a k i n g o f
orders by the System Operator, including
orders:
(I) Imposing financial penalties on market
PAGE 67
December 2021/Issue 32
By Joy Ameh
participants;
(ii) Authorizing a person to participate in the
markets; or
(iii) Terminating, suspending o r r e s t r i c t i n g a
person's rights to participate in the markets; and
(d) Concerning the administration and enforcement
of the Market Rules, including provisions for m a r k e t
rule amendments, dispute resolution, penalties and
market surveillance.
The SLA is bound by the provisions of the Market Rules
relating to force majeure
Force majeure is that unforeseen event or circumstance
that occurs which affects the performance of a party in an
agreement to the extent that it prevents that party from
fulfilling his obligations in a contract.
Clause 8 of the SLA discusses the Force Majeure event and
conditions warranting force majeure which include; fire, flood,
civil unrests/ disturbances, acts of war, etc which is
detailed in the Market Rules 46.8 .4.
Clause 8 SLA
Force Majeure in relation to a party, means any event or
circumstance, or combination of events or circumstances:
(a) that is beyond reasonable control of the party;
(b) that adversely affects the performance by the party of its
obligations under this Agreement; and
(c) the adverse effects of which could not have been
foreseen, prevented, overcome, remedied or mitigated in
whole or in part by the party through the exercise of diligence
and reasonable care and includes, but is not limited to, acts of
war (whether declared or undeclared), invasion, armed
conflict or act of a foreign enemy, blockade, embargo,
revolution, riot, insurrection, civil disobedience or
disturbances, vandalism or acts of terrorism; strikes, lockouts,
restrictive work practices or other labour disturbances;
SLA
unlawful arrests or restraints by governments or
governmental, administrative or regulatory agencies or
authorities; orders, regulations or restrictions imposed by
governments or governmental, administrative or regulatory
agencies or authorities unless such order, regulation or
restriction is imposed as a result of a violation by the party of a
permit, license or other authorization or of any applicable law;
and acts of God including lightning, earthquake, fire, flood,
landslide, unusually heavy or prolonged rain or accumulation
of snow or ice or lack of water arising from weather or
environmental problems; provided however, for greater
certainty,
(i) The lack, insufficiency or non-availability of funds shall
not constitute a Force Majeure Event,
(ii) An act of the System Operator or the Market Operator
effected in accordance with these Rules shall not
constitute a Force Majeure in respect of a Participant,
(iii) an act of a Participant effected in accordance with these
Rules shall not constitute Force Majeure in respect of the
System Operator or the Market Operator; and
(iv) The TSP, or the System Operator or the Market Operator
shall not, for the purposes of this definition, be
considered a governmental, administrative or regulatory
agency or authority;
Section 46.8.2 of the Market Rules; Liability of the System
Operator and the Market Operator;
Subject to this Rule, and except as otherwise provided in these
Rules or the Grid Code, the System Operator and the Market
Operator shall not be liable, whether in contract, tort or
otherwise, for any claims, losses, charges, damages, demands,
liabilities, judgments, costs, penalties, fees, obligations,
expenses and or disbursements made or incurred by a
Participant or its directors, officers, employees or agents,
arising out of any act or omission of the TSP in the exercise or
performance, or in the execution of an intention to exercise or
perform any authority, power or duty under these Rules or the
Grid Code, except to the extent that such claims, losses,
charges, damages, demands, liabilities, judgments, costs,
penalties, fees, obligations, expenses and or disbursements
arise out of any wilful misconduct by, or wilful omission of the
System Operator or the Market Operator.
Non-Compliance and different Levels of Non- Compliance
Penalty in Market Rules
A Level “L1” non-compliance shall be found where the
Participant has not fully complied, but has complied in part with
any Rule or Section and where the Participant has, on its own
PAGE 68
December 2021/Issue 32
initiative, informed the Market Operator on a timely basis of
the non-compliance, the reasons therefor and the manner in,
and the time within which such non-compliance will be
remedied;
A Level “L2” non-compliance shall be found where the
Participant has failed to comply with all of the requirements of
any Rule or Section and where the Participant has, of its own
initiative, informed the Market Operator on a timely basis of
the non-compliance, the reasons therefor and the manner in,
and the time within which such non-compliance will be
remedied;
A Level “L3” non-compliance shall be found where the
Participant has failed to comply, in whole or in part, with all of
the requirements of a Rule or a Section and has failed to inform
the Market Operator of the non-compliance on a timely basis
and on its own initiative but, upon request by the Market
Operator and within the time specified in the request, informs
the Market Operator of the reasons for non-compliance and
the manner in, and the time within which such non-
compliance will be remedied; and
A Level “L4” non-compliance shall be found where the
Participant has failed to comply, in whole or in part, with all of
the requirements of a Rule or a Section and has failed to inform
the Market Operator of the non-compliance on a timely basis
and on its own initiative, and has failed to respond to the
Market Operator's request, for a statement of the reasons for
such non- compliance and of the manner in which and the
time within which such non-compliance will be remedied,
within the time specified in the request.
Dispute Resolution
Clause 9 SLA
The SLA under clause 9 aligns its dispute resolution
mechanism with that of the Market Rules which is Arbitration.
Arbitration and Conciliation Act CAP A18 LFN 2004 is the
enabling law that guides Arbitration proceedings in Nigeria.
MR 43.1.3: Provides that A Mediator or Conciliator may in the
interest of Justice, alter or vary the provisions of the
Arbitration proceedings with the consent of the Parties.
MR 43.2.1: Provides that:“Subject to Rules 43.2.3, the Dispute
resolution procedure provided for in this Rule 43 shall apply
to:
(d) Any Dispute between the System Operator or the TSP and
a Participant, in connection with, in relation to or arising
SLA December 2021/Issue 32

from the terms of any agreement, including an agreement o The Market Rules;
between the TSP and such Participant for connection of the o The Grid Code;
facilities of such Participant to transmission system, unless the
o Any proposal for amending the Rules that is under
applicable agreement or contract or the license of a party to
the dispute either provides for an alternative dispute consideration;
resolution mechanism or provides that the dispute resolution o The Market Procedures and the Operating
regime provided in this Rule 43 shall not be applicable; Procedures;
o Participants' Register;
MR 43.3.2: Where a dispute in respect of which the dispute
resolution process under this Rule 43 has been initiated o Load forecasts and load statistics; and
involves the implementation of an order made or a direction o The prices on the Balancing Market, once the
given by the Market Operator pursuant to Rule 45 (45.2.6, Balancing Market is in operation.
45.3.10, 45.4.5, 45.5.2 or 45.5.9), then, subject to Rule 43.2.4(c),
the obligation of the Participant to comply with the order or
MR 46.4.4:The following information shall be available for
direction, or to discharge the financial penalty, as is applicable,
open access to Participants and the Commission on the
shall be stayed until 15 days after the appointment of a
Website:
Mediator/Conciliation body or an Arbitrator, and thereafter
the reports prepared by the System Operator or the Market
for such period, if any, as may be determined by such
Operator when the Market Rules or the Grid Code establish
Mediator/ Conciliation body or Arbitrator.
that such report must be sent to Participants;

MR 45.2.7: Subject to Rules 43.3.2, 43.3.3 and 45.3.4(c), any o Maintenance outage plans;
order issued by the Market Operator pursuant to Rule 45.2.6 o Expected and actual Transmission Constraints;
shall be effective from the sixteenth (16) Business Day o Day-ahead Dispatch Schedules;
following the receipt of the order by the Participant.
o Ex-post Dispatch analysis;
Other sanctions include Suspension and Disconnection Orders
o Ancillary Services provided and costs;
in 45.3; Termination Orders and Disconnection Orders in
Article 45.4; Non-compliance Letters and Financial Penalties in o Expected and actual Must Run Generation, and its
Rule 45.5, Financial Penalty listed in Rule 45.5.7 cost

Confidentiality
MR 46.4.7: Each Participant and the System Operator and the
Parties are at liberty to declare any document they are
Market Operator shall:
required to produce during Arbitration as Confidential
pursuant to Rule 43.8.1 of the Rules. It provides thus:
prevent access to Confidential Information which is in its
possession or control, by any person not authorized to have
“Any party may declare any document, or information
access to such Confidential Information pursuant to these
contained in any document required to be produced during
Rules or the Grid Code, and shall in all cases, take appropriate
arbitration as Confidential Information and the party making
measures to ensure destruction or disposal of records of
such declaration shall provide written justification thereof to
Confidential Information in its possession whenever such
the Arbitrator. If the claim of the Arbitration Tribunal confirms
Confidential Information is no longer required to be retained
the confidentiality of the document or information, having
by it pursuant to these Rules or the Grid Code; and ensure that
regard, where applicable, to the provisions of Rule 46.4, the
any person to whom it discloses Confidential Information
Arbitration Tribunal shall establish such procedures as may be
observes the provisions of this Rule 46.4 in relation to that
necessary to protect the confidentiality and commercial
Confidential Information.
value of such document or information, including:
SLA's financial remedies shall be based on Liquidated
MR 46.4.3: The following information shall be available for
Damages, factors and penalties as stated in the Market Rules.
open access to the public on the Website:
This makes the Market Rules key in guiding dispute resolution,
The Participant's Application Form;
force majeure, liabilities and confidentiality in NESI SLA Era.
o The Market Participation Agreement;

PAGE 69
CULTURE December 2021/Issue 32

BECOMING A MAN IN
FANTSWAM TRADITION
By Kazah Bili Akau

C ulture is a significant identity

of people. Becoming a man in
the Fantswam tradition is a
prominent aspect of the rich cultural
heritage of the people.

The Fantswam ethnic community

with a population of about 500,000
people is located in Kafanchan, the
southern part of Kaduna State. It is
made up of six villages, namely Zabin,
Zipak, Zankwo, Mannyi, Takau, and
Takum.

The Fantswam people are

predominantly farmers and hunters
and live in an organized system
governed by specific laws and
customs. The chief of the community
known as ''Agwam Fantswam'' has
advisers who are elders and
members of the Traditional Ruling
Council. They make all decisions
concerning the community.

In the past, this council supervised

law enforcement under a group known as the ''Aboi''. The
Aboi is a cultural cult that selected its membership from all
clans of the community to form a strong force for hunting and
protection. Becoming a member of the Aboi was the highest
honor for a man. Nothing happened within the boundaries of
the community that escaped the knowledge of the Aboi.
Other cults in the community including the Kursack, Gubudung,
etc, are ceremonial.
The Aboi dispensed justice and carried out sentences,
including capital punishment. It was like the superior court that
cannot be challenged. Children believed that the Aboi watched
over their activities, this kept them in check.
From age five, the male child assumed certain responsibilities
in the home. He feeds the family's livestock and was
accountable for them. He makes sure their hunting partner-
the dog, was well fed and that he was home at 3 pm every day
to ensure all is well. His first bow and arrow were given to him
by his maternal parents at age seven, and he was obliged to
give the head of the first big game he kills to them.
Subsequently, he must also give them a part of every catch.
He was given a female chicken to rear, which he kept to
reproduce for his collection. All these were in preparation for
becoming a man.
At age seventeen, the male child is deemed ready to step into

PAGE 70
CULTURE December 2021/Issue 32

manhood; His father enlists him among those to be initiated by
the Aboi. Before the initiation proper, the child undertakes all
arrangements for his initiation, by cultivating enough guinea
corn to enable him make burkutu, a local beer, he cultivated
native beans (beni seed) that would be used in making local
delicacy for the occasion and also plants potatoes, yams, and
cocoyams. Meanwhile, his mother would prepare mahogany
oil called 'Amea Cou' a rare rich oil that smoothens and
nourishes the skin and stored it in a 'sounding'. A clay pot.
On the first day of the initiation, Burkutu made from grains
cultivated by the boys was presented to older people to drink.
On the second day, Zunzwa-Kadak, the Beni seed, is prepared
with chicken along with burkutu and taken to the initiation site
to be eaten by the elders only. The Aboi initiation proper takes
place in a hut called '' Tu Aboi'', onlookers cannot witness what
happens when each boy enters it. While the boys were in the
hut, a representative of the Aboi comes out to tell the initiates'
families about each initiate. The Aboi detains stubborn young
men for a long time, tormenting them all through. The initiation
lasts 12hours (3 am to 3 pm), but for the stubborn ones who
were kept in the ''Tu Aboi'' for longer hours, even days. Those
that the Aboi felt would be a threat to the community never
came out at all. What happened in the hut remains a mystery
till today.
No child that entered the Tu-Aboi hut came out the same.
Troublesome ones came out calm men, talkatives came out
sober and frightened boys came out brave men. After the Tu
Aboi' experience, the boys were taken to an undisclosed
place for a day, while their parents go home to prepare for
their homecoming. On the third
day, as the 'new' man arrives
home, his mother empties her
pot of 'Amea Cou' (Mahogany
oil) on him, as a sign of blessing
while the father puts on him, the
skin of his biggest game, to
show that he has now come of
age.
entertaining the crowd. This masquerade, believed to possess
magical powers that distinguished it from others, jumps into
the arena from a far distance when invoked, and was only
seen in the sky as it jumps into the arena.
The presence of the cults at the ceremonies signified that
able-bodied men are being added to the community. These
take place before the 'Tu Aboi' experience.
After the initiation, the 'real' journey to becoming a man
begins. The 'new man' now has to decide how to live as a man.
A piece of land was given him, where he builds his house, more
responsibilities were given to him on the farm and while
hunting. At this point, other social groups of men now take
interest in these new 'men' and offer to initiate them into their
societies. The most powerful of these social groups is the
''Tungpak''.
Tungpak is a society that constitutes men who are members
of the Aboi cult. It is a powerful society that was recognized
and feared. Members were mostly found in the Agwam
Fantswam Council of Elders and were very influential. Young
men strove to join such societies after the Aboi initiation.
Once the boy had comfortably secured a seat among his new
contemporaries, his father is proud that he has finally
produced a man.
Today, however, with the advent of modern religion, the Aboi
is no longer accepted, although basic aspects of this old
practice remain in the people's traditional practice.

When this ceremony coincides

with an annual festival, those to
be initiated also gather with
villagers at the village square for
a combined ceremony. For cults,
like the 'Kursack', a masquerade
dances with dexterity

PAGE 71
TRAINING
Health and Safety Training for Operators and
Maintenance Staff of Enugu Region
Operators in Enugu Region
T
he Occupational Health and
Safety (OH&S) Department of
TCN has organized a training and
sensitization workshop for staff of the
Enugu Region. The 2-day workshop
which held in Enugu recently with the
theme, “Accident Prevention and
Reporting Strategies, Hazards
Identification in Work Environment,
Unsafe Conditions in the Work Place”,
sought to bring the operators and field
PAGE 72
staff of the Region up to speed with
imperatives of safety in the work place.
The Workshop was declared open by
the Assistant General Manager
(Technical Services), Enugu Region,
Engr. Ada Okafor, who commended the
OH&S Department for creating
awareness on health and safety issues,
noting that such training and
December 2021/Issue 32
By Mary Phillip-Udom
sensitization campaigns have
significantly reduced the rate of
accidents in the Region. Engr. Okafor
used the occasion to advise
participants to take advantage of the
training to enhance safety
consciousness both in the
workplace and at home to avoid
accidents.
Speaking at the end of the event, the
Assistant General Manager,
Occupational Health and Safety Mr.
Ahmed Rufai, and facilitator/paper
presenter at the Workshop
expressed the need for staff of the
Region to be consistently reminded
of the imperative of safety
consciousness, and promised to
continue to organize similar
programmes to reinforce the
observance of safety requirements
among staff. Some of the participants
expressed satisfaction with the benefits
of the training and gave the assurance
that they will put into practice the
knowledge and insights gained
regarding health and safety in the
workplace.
 AWARD NIGHT December 2021/Issue 32

TCN 2021 End of Year / Award Night

PAGE 73
 December 2021/Issue 32

POWER SECTOR AGENCIES AND GENCOS

Engr. Dr. Sule A. Abdulaziz

Dr. Inugonum Thomas

Engr. Dele Shittu
Jumoke Dare Mrs. Joy Ameh
Rufus Imafidon Ogechukwu Uzor

PAGE 74