Business

TCN Promises To Improve Power Supply In Lagos, Ogun

Published

7 years ago

August 1, 2018

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) says it will construct six 330kv transmission substations in Lagos and Ogun States to improve power supply and boost industrialisation in the country.
The Managing Director of TCN, Mr Mohammed Usman-Gur made this known at a news conference in Abuja yesterday.
He said the construction of the substations became necessary in view of the importance of electricity in promoting industrialisation.
According to him, TCN‘s move to build the substations in the western parts of the country is aimed at consolidating on its Transmission Rehabilitation Expansion Programme (TREP), having begun the Abuja transmission expansion projects.
“We also have the Lagos, Ogun transmission substations, and we are putting six transmission substations between Lagos and Ogun and this substations are the substations we are doing to target the most industrialised parts of Nigeria.
“Most of the biggest industries we have in Nigeria are between Abeokuta and Lagos, so we are building four 330kv substations in Ogun .
“This is the first time in the history of Nigeria that we are building more than one 330kv substations in one location and this time we are building four.’’
Mohammed, who did not disclose the cost of the projects, listed the locations of the projects in Ogun to include Mountain of fire, Ojijo, Aribajo and new Agbala.
He said the other two substations would also be developed at the Badagry area of Lagos.
“We have finished the survey, we have finished the design, and we have determined the compensation.
“What is remaining is that the compensation became very high, but we have briefed our minister and he wrote to the Ogun State Government to bring down the cost of compensation or to take up the compensation itself. “
According to him, TCN will ensure that companies who had previously abandoned TCN’s equipment at the port will not be allowed to win the contract.
He said that only qualified and credible contractors would be allowed to bid for the project.
Mohammed also said that TCN had begun the process of acquiring a functional Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition system (SCDA) to monitor activities of power sector operators on the national grid.
He said the installation of a functional SCDA would deter operators across the value chain from engaging in activities capable of affecting the grid.
The TCN boss also announced that the company had attained a wheeling capacity of 7,124, as at Dec. 2017, having commissioned new substations and installed 27 new transformers across the country.
Mohammed noted that installation of the transformers was done by TCN in- house engineers at reduced cost, adding that the company had also maintained its frequency control at 49.5 and 50.5.
He, however, said TCN was working to attain the West African Power Pool (WAPP) frequency control target of 49.8 and 50.2, and would also establish a spinning reserve to stabilise the grid.
On TCN’s stranded containers at the port, he said the company via the support of Federal Government recently recovered 693 containers of transmission equipment.
According to him, several attempts to recover the containers in the last 15 years have been unsuccessful by previous management.
The TCN boss said European Union (EU) had also agreed to provide a 25 million Euro grant to TCN to build sola power transmission line in Katsina.
He said the line would be used to transmit Federal Government’s planed 1000 solar power Independent Power Project due to be constructed in Katsina.
Mohammed also revealed that TCN’s funding had not improved, hence it submitted a request to Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to review its tariff.
According to him, the company had devised other measures to source funds to execute its projects through multilateral and donor agencies and reduction of cost of projects by using in -house engineers to execute projects.
Mohammed noted that Federal Government through the effort of Ministry of Power, Works and Housing had also helped to approach the Ministry of Finance for assistance for its expansion programmes.
He emphasised the need for investment on distribution infrastructure on the part of the Distribution Companies (DisCos) for improved power supply in the country.

Business

PENGASSAN Tasks Multinationals On Workers’ Salary Increase

Published

7 days ago

December 8, 2025

The Tide

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has asked companies in the oil and gas sector to undertake urgent review of salaries of their workers in view of the prevailing harsh economic conditions in the country.

Also, the pensioners of Chevron Nigeria, under the aegis PenCoN, have lauded the President of PENGASSAN, Comrade Festus Osifo and his executive on their unrelenting efforts toward addressing pension abnormalities faced by retired workers in the oil and gas industry.

The association also appealed to the federal government to take necessary measures to check banditry and terrorist activities in parts of the country.

PENGASSAN President, Osifo who addressed journalists shortly after the National Executive Council meeting of the association in Abuja, at the weekend, said that though a lot of success has been recorded in negotiating salary reviews for its members, there are still organisations that have failed to lift their workers from the present harsh economic situation.

He said within this period, PENGASSAN has signed numerous Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs) which has brought smiles to the faces of its teeming members.

“This is because we recognise that our job, literally, is how to protect the job of our members, and how to enhance their pay,” he said.

Osifo said that operators in the oil and gas sectors always go for the best qualified professionals to carry out their operations.

“So, the same way they recruit the best, we also challenge them to provide the best condition of service and provide the best remuneration.

“Yes, today, a lot of companies will have achieved successes, but there are still few that we are still discussing at their CBAs, that we are not yet there.

“We still use this opportunity to call on these companies that are still foot dragging, that are still holding back, even with the massive devaluation that has occurred in our country, that still don’t want to fix the remuneration of our members.

“We are calling on them to do the needful, because for us in PENGASSAN we will push without holding back. We will push, using everything in our arsenal, to ensure that the needful is done,” he said.

Osifo spoke of the dispute with the Dangote Refinery group, saying there are still pending issues to be resolved.

“Gentlemen of the press, during the networking session, we also looked at the issues that are plaguing some of our branches, and you know that recently, we had some challenges in Dangote Refinery and PetroChemicals Ltd.

“And within this period, since our last National Industrial Action, we have been engaging them in a lot of conversations, but the issues are not fully resolved. There are still a lot of pending issues.

“Yes, the NEC decided that, yes, let us still consummate that process by pushing those issues, by engaging in dialogue to resolve the issues, and by also engaging all our social partners and stakeholders to get the issues resolved,” he said.

Business

SEC Unveils Digital Regulatory Hub To Boost Oversight Across Financial Markets

Published

7 days ago

December 8, 2025

The Tide

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has launched the Regulatory Hub, a new centralized digital platform designed to streamline collaboration, strengthen oversight, and improve transparency across Nigeria’s financial and capital market ecosystem.

The Commission disclosed this in a statement posted on its website.

According to the commission, the platform connects key regulatory and security institutions including the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), and Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), enabling them to exchange information securely and in real time.

The launch of this regulatory hub comes ahead of the implementation of new tax laws in January 2026, with agencies such as the FIRS spreading its tentacles across sector to monitor compliance.

According to the SEC Director-General, Emomotimi Agama, the launch marks a significant step toward modernizing Nigeria’s regulatory framework through technology.

“The Regulatory Hub is a major step in our commitment to leverage technology for stronger regulatory synergy. By connecting regulators on one platform, we are building resilience, enhancing market integrity, and promoting investor confidence,” he said.

The SEC said the platform would help reduce bottlenecks in regulatory processes and facilitate faster, more informed decision-making across agencies.

Reinforcing the DG’s comments, the Executive Commissioner, Operations, Bola Ajomale, highlighted the operational benefits of the new system.

“The platform will significantly improve the timeliness and quality of regulatory decision-making. It provides a single window for regulators to share data, respond to requests, and collaborate seamlessly in safeguarding our financial and capital markets,” he said.

The commission believes the Regulatory Hub would support its broader mandate to strengthen investor protection, enhance market stability, and harmonize regulatory activities across the financial sector.

It urged stakeholders to initiate interest by emailing the Commission, adding that once registered, participants would be able to access the Hub and take advantage of its features.

Business

NAFDAC Decries Circulation Of Prohibited Food Items In markets …….Orders Vendors’ Immediate Cessation Of Dealings With Products

Published

7 days ago

December 8, 2025

The Tide

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has raised an alarm over the growing circulation of banned food products across markets in the country.

The agency, in a Press Release dated 6 December 2025, warned that these items including pasta, noodles, sugar and tomato paste are expressly listed on the Federal Government’s Customs Prohibition List and are illegal to import.

NAFDAC stated that the sale and distribution of such prohibited items violate national trade laws, compromise the integrity of Nigeria’s food control system, and pose significant public health risks, as they have not undergone the agency’s mandatory safety and quality evaluations.

Importers, market traders, and supermarket operators have therefore, been directed to immediately cease all dealings in these items and to notify their supply chain partners to halt transactions involving prohibited products.

The agency emphasized that failure to comply will attract strict enforcement measures, including seizure and destruction of goods, suspension or revocation of operational licences, and prosecution under relevant laws.

The statement said “The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has raised an alarm over the growing incidence of smuggling, sale, and distribution of regulated food products such as pasta, noodles, sugar, and tomato paste currently found in markets across the country.

“These products are expressly listed on the Federal Government’s Customs Prohibition List and are not permitted for importation”.

NAFDAC also called on other government bodies, including the Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria Immigration Service(NIS) Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Nigeria Shippers Council, and the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS), to collaborate in enforcing the ban on these unsafe products.

By: Lady Godknows Ogbulu