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Power Transmission Projects Delivery, Execution In Northern States
In the last two years, the Nigerian government through the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), has completed 11 projects spanning across eight states in the Northeast, North central and the Northwest.
The company is presently executing 30 more projects with funding from the World Bank and four other revenue sources, according to records obtained from the company’s Transmission Service Provider (TSP) section.
TCN executed these projects under its Bauchi region and across over 10 transmission substations. The Bauchi Transmission Region of TCN covers the six states of the North East region, Plateau in the North Central region, and Kafanchan area in Kaduna State in the North West region.
These North-East states are Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba and Yobe. The Bauchi Region interfaces with three Distribution Companies (DisCos) namely Jos Electricity Distribution Company (JEDC), Kaduna Electric and Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC).
Analysis of the project records at the Bauchi region indicate that, TCN constructed 132, 33 kilovolts (kV) Bauchi transmission substation with one 60MVA power transformer and three 33kV feeders to supply power to customers through Jos DisCo.
At the 330kv Jos substation, the company installed a 150MVA power transformer which is already operating and will be commissioned soon. Besides this, it has commissioned a 75MVAr reactor with advanced fire protection system to improve the voltage of power supply in Plateau State.
In Kaduna, TCN has enhanced the 132kV Kafanchan substation where it installed two units of 60MVA transformers recently.
The innovative process also reached Gombe State where TCN delivered five projects. Foremost of this, is the replacement and upgrading of a faulty 45MVA transformer to a 60MVA transformer at the 132kV Gombe substation. Still at the Federal University Kashere in Gombe State, TCN constructed a dedicated 33kV line bay extension to improve the bulk electricity available to the university.
There was a similar 3kV power line project that was completed in Doma and another power line to the Nigeria Army University in Biu, Borno State. TCN also installed two units of 50MVAr devices for voltage improvement in the state.
Another major project the Nigerian electricity grid service provider completed is the re-erection of 10 units of 330kV towers on the Damaturu to Molia (Maiduguri) transmission line. The company is currently stringing the conductors on the line.
TCN is doing 30 other projects with funds from World Bank, four others TCN is further delivering 30 more power transmission projects in the Bauchi transmission region with funding from the World Bank, the Federal Government of Nigeria budget, among others.
Among the 13 projects being funded by the World Bank in the Bauchi region, is the reinforcement with a 150MVA transformer at the 330kV Yola substation and two units of 100MVA transformers at the 132kV level of the substation. The Yola Transmission facility is also getting high voltage switchgears and associated equipment with three additional feeder bays.
TCN is also installing a 150MVA transformer, high voltage switchgears and associated equipment with three more feeder bays at the 330/132/33kV Mayo Belwa substation still in Adamawa State.
In Borno State, two units of 60MVA transformers, high voltage switchgears, accessories along with the complete rehabilitation of the 132kV Damboa station is a key milestone.
The company is installing a 150MVA transformer at the 330kV Damaturu substation along with high voltage switchgears and associated equipment with three feeder bays in Yobe state.
The 132kV Biu substation in Borno State is being rehabilitated and reinforced with 60MVA transformers along with high voltage switchgears. At the 330kV Maiduguri substation, the company is installing a 150MVA transformer, high voltage switchgears and three feeder bays.
At the 330kV Bauchi substation which also serves as the regional headquarters of TCN, the company is working on reinforcing the facility with 150MVA transformer, high voltage switchgears and associated equipment along with three feeder bays. TCN is also upgrading multiple power transformers, rehabilitating the control rooms with digital control systems and associated high voltages devices.
The federal government through TCN is upgrading 132kV Jalingo substation to 330kV level with 150MVA transformer and 100MVA at the 132kV side; through the World Bank fund, TCN will also reinforce the 330kV Gombe substation with 300MVA and 100MVA transformers and their extension devices.
There will be a rehabilitation of the civil structures of the control room and the installation of a digital control system at the 330kV Jos substation; while TCN is doing a turn-in and turn-out of the 132kV Bilit substation and will install two 60MVA transformers there. And in Bauchi, TCN will construct another 330/132kV substation with two 150MVA and two 60MVA transformers.
Eight others being executed in the Bauchi region are being funded with budgetary appropriation. There are more projects coming with budgetary appropriation especially in Adamawa state. A brand new 132kV double circuit transmission line will be constructed from Yola up to Mubi while serving Song, Little, Gombi, Hong and Gulak 132kv substations. Each of these substations will have the installation of two units of 60MVA transformers and line bay extension.
Equally, TCN is working on extending the 132kV double circuit line in Yola; it will do the same for the 132kV transmission line from Dramaturge to Gashua and reaching Nguru Hadejia. The Gashua and Nguru substations will have their bays extended.
The Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of TCN is funding one project in Yobe state and that is to provide a 60MVA transformer with three distribution interface feeders at the 132kV Damaturu substation.
Five projects are being funded through a TCN – DisCo Service Level Agreement (SLA) strategy with the financing coming through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The projects are the completion of 132kV Makeri to Pankshin transmission line between Bauchi and Plateau; reinforcement of 132kV Gombe substation with 100MVA transformer, there is the same project for 132kV Yola and Jos substations. TCN will also install two 60MVA transformers at the Potiskum substation in Yobe under this funding arrangement.
And through the Siemens’ Presidential Power Initiative (PPI), three power transmission projects are ongoing in the Bauchi region. These are 60MVA transformer installation at Potiskum substation (Yobe), 60MVA mobile transformer installation at Savannah substation in Bauchi and another 60MVA mobile transformer at New Toro substation still in Bauchi.
Why we are investing massively in transmission – MD
Further speaking on the investments, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of TCN, Engr. Sule Abdulaziz, said the company was making the improvements in the grid, through its Nigeria Electricity Grid Maintenance, Expansion, and Rehabilitation Programme (NEGMERP) to improve bulk power available to distribution load centres to supply to Nigerians.
He said, “These were accomplished in spite of the challenges such as insurgency, vandalism, communal clashes and encroachment of transmission Right of Way (RoW).”
He also said a lot of old substations have been reinforced with new transformers and associated switchgear; old transmission lines are also being reconductored.
The company’s head said TCN has also awarded contracts for several new transmission lines as part of its priority projects, while some of the construction works are ongoing others are at different stages of completion. These include reconductoring of 16 transmission lines, and 17 others under the Service Level Agreement (SLA) projects to further reinforce the grid for optimal evacuation and transmission of bulk electricity.
“We must resolve to continually face our challenges head-on by constantly looking for ways to improve our revenue capacity and capability to deliver on our mandate,” Abdulaziz noted while urging stakeholders on cooperation.
In view of the massive investment by the federal government, particularly the transmission section of the power sector value chain, the Nigerian Power Consumers Forum (NPCF), commended TCN and the donor agencies, including the World Bank for the feat.
It noted that only such critical power transmission grid investments, backed by a matching strength at the DisCos’ networks, and even at the GenCos’ stations, can bring succour to power consumers.
The Convener of NPCF, Michael Okoh, said the north eastern Nigeria has been neglected for long in terms of infrastructure, adding that with such facilities to improve power supply, the economy would thrive and vices as well civil unrest in some of the places would end as people have thriving things to do.
Recall that President Muhammadu Buhari last month, commissioned the exploration of oil in Kolmani River 2 oil well between Gombe and Bauchi state. The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd said it plans massive investments around the oilfield including a large-scale refinery, power plant and a fertilizer plant.
Mr Okoh noted that the provision of power transmission facilities ahead of these NNPC investments was crucial.
Okoh said: “TCN is actually planning ahead and this is the best way to stir up development. There is no single power plant in the north east up until 2020 when the 40MW Dadin Kowa started operation and the 40MW Kashimbila hydro is still not operational.
“NNPC is building a power plant in Maiduguri and if TCN gets its facilities in good time, they will be just the best for the NNPC Kolmani refinery, power and fertilizer plants,” added Okoh.
*Source: Independent
The Media Rights Agenda (MRA) has urged for necessary measures to protect journalists and other media workers during this weekend’s off-cycle elections in Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi States.
The group sent the request to the federal and state governments, as well as law enforcement and security agencies, stressing that the role of journalists in disseminating information about the electoral process is critical to ensuring free, fair, and transparent elections.
In a statement issued ahead of the elections in Lagos and signed by the Communications Officer, Media Rights Agenda, Idowu Adewale, MRA also urged journalists to be cautious and to use its existing hotline (08138755660) to report any threat or attack they may encounter during the process, as well as any obstacle.
Adewale said in the statement: “Given the pattern of heightened attacks on journalists and the media during previous elections, including the recent 2023 general elections, as well as the tense political climate in the three states in the lead-up to the elections, measures must be taken to ensure general security during the elections and provide adequate protection for journalists covering the elections.”
“Access to information allows citizens and other members of the public to have the information they need about political and electoral processes, facilitating effective public participation in elections,” he says.
“Journalists and the media play an important role in ensuring residents and other members of the public have access to information and may participate in the process.
“As part of efforts to preserve the integrity of the polls, it is also critical that the safety and well-being of these interlocutors be assured and safeguarded.”
Lamenting the increased number of attacks on journalists in the run-up to the off-cycle elections, as well as earlier this year in the run-up to the general elections, he emphasised that “a free and vibrant media is fundamental to a healthy democracy, and journalists must be able to carry out their duties without fear, coercion, or violence.” During this vital phase, MRA stands ready to assist them and assure their safety.”
Men from the Edo State Police Command are said to have detained Mrs. Toluige Olokoobi’s husband after he allegedly murdered her.
Olokoobi was the mother of Oreofeoluwa Lawal-Babalola, the tiny boy whose video went viral in 2020 after he pleaded with his mother, “Mummy be calming down.”
Oreofeoluwa rose to prominence on social media after a video of him crying in an attempt to confidently appeal to his mother, who chastised him, went viral.
The film inspired Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who used it to deliver an Eid-el-Kabir appeal to Muslims and Lagos people in general to remain calm during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Following that, the youngster and his family met with the governor, who praised his bravery and poise.
While little has been heard about the family in three years, heartbreaking news broke on social media on Tuesday that the boy’s mother had committed suicide.
According to an X user, Olokoobi committed suicide in Benin, the capital of Edo State, for unknown reasons.
The X user, who stated that he was present at the site on Monday afternoon, went on to say that she had refused to disclose her difficulties with anyone before committing herself.
“The woman in the viral Mummy Calm Down video has just committed suicide here in Benin,” he stated in an email.
“She refused to discuss her problems with anyone.” She abandoned three children for her husband, including the well-known Mummy Calm Down boy.”
Meanwhile, confirming Olokoobi’s death in a chat with BBC Pidgin, the spokesperson of the Edo State police command, Chidi Nwabuzor, said her husband has been arrested and detained for questioning.
Nwabuzor said the husband reported the matter to the police.
The police spokesperson quoted the husband to have said that “he came home from the market when he saw his wife hanging with rope on her neck”.
Nwabuzor said she was rushed to the hospital and then to the mortuary after she was confirmed dead. (Adapted from a Vanguard report).
The Anambra State Police Command Headquarters Conference Hall was a hive of activity Thursday as CP Aderemi Adeoye took turns decorating around 18 promoted officers of the command with their new titles.
The delight of some of the officers whose wives assisted the CP in decorating their husbands with their new ranks knew no bounds, as their husbands duly saluted their wives and the CP for their new positions and responsibilities.
Obi Innocent, one of the officers elevated to the rank of Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), whose wife joined CP Aderemi Adeoye in adorning him with his new rank, said it was wonderful that the Inspector General of Police thought him worthy.
CSP Obi Innocent, the officer in charge of the Legal Department at Zone 13, Police Zonal Headquarters Ukpo, stated that his new rank was a call to service and that he would do his best to uphold the charge given to them by CP Aderemi Adeoye to respect and protect the citizenry’s fundamental rights in the discharge of their new assignments.
Charity Akharame, who was honoured with the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) and was the only female officer among the 18 promoted officers decorated with new ranks, said it was not an easy feat but she was grateful to be among those who were decorated with their new ranks.
DSP Charity Akharame, the officer in charge of stores in the Anambra State Police Command, recalled how she began as a Police Constable and worked her way up to her current position as Deputy Superintendent of Police.
She stated that as a very disciplined police officer, she would follow the Police Commissioner’s directions regarding respect for all and sundry in the fulfillment of her constitutional obligations.
Jane-Frances Obi, one of the spouses of the officers elevated to the level of CSP, stated that being the wife of a police officer was not an easy assignment. As a result, she recommended any lady who is married to a police officer to be patient and understanding because the job is quite demanding.
Jane-Frances Obi, whose husband is Innocent Obi, the officer in charge of the Legal Department at Zone 13 Ukpo, believes the promotion is a reward for years of being patient, understanding, and standing in for them when they are not present.
Meanwhile, Emenike Chinenyenwa, who was decorated with the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) and presented a vote of appreciation, expressed deep gratitude to the IGP and the Chairman of the Police Service Commission for considering them worthy of being adorned in their new ranks.
ACP Emenike, the officer in charge of Medicals, stated that the elevation comes with increased responsibility and that they will work harder in their new tasks.
CP Aderemi Adeoye praised the current promotion winners in his remarks, noting that two aspects make the police career very interesting and eventful. He stated that one is for promotion and the other is for positions.
CP Adeoye, on the other hand, urged the newly honored officers to develop more empathy, compassion, care, and dedication in the performance of their jobs.
The police chief insisted that newly promoted officers must first recognise that they share the same humanity as others, and as a result, they must treat all people with dignity and protect their fundamental human rights at all times.
CP Aderemi Adeoye stressed that without the enormous roles of spouses, they wouldn’t have been successful in their careers. He therefore congratulated all the promoted and prayed that God gives them good health to enjoy the new ranks and the energy to discharge the responsibilities of their new offices.
- Source: Independent
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