Business
TCN Seeks Regulation To Protect Transformers
Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has called for a regulation by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to protect its transformers in the event of any damage caused by Electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos).
TCN’s Managing Director, Mr Mohammed Usman made the call in an interview with journalists in Abuja yesterday.
Mohammed said the inability of the DisCos to invest in their distribution infrastructure had resulted in the use of some of TCN’s transformers by DisCos to supply electricity.
This, he said, had sometimes resulted in the breakdown of the transformers.
“Under the grid code, everybody has their responsibility; we have our responsibility; and distribution companies have their responsibility.
“And where they fail to invest, it is not our problem that they fail to invest, but their lack of investment is affecting our system when we are connected to them.
“And that is why I am telling NERC that we are writing a petition regarding those areas where they are taking supply directly from our transformers because they have failed to build their own injection sub-station.
“We are going to ask NERC to put it as a rule to say that if our transformers get spoilt because of the DisCos’ failure to invest, they are going to compensate us.
“Because if they connect directly from our station without passing through their injection station; if there is a fault on their line, it will hit our transformers directly.
“Sometimes, they will come and say the fault has been cleared and TCN will restore supply, while they did not truly clear the fault and then that will scatter our transformer.
“We are saying, if such thing happens, we are going to write a petition asking NERC to do a regulation that will protect us.’’
Mohammed added that given the presence of several uncompleted transmission projects by some contractors in the past, TCN management was taking over the expired contracts.
“You know those contracts actually, have expired; most of those contracts are contracts for supply and installation of 330Kv sub-station and they are supposed to last for 18 months.
“The one in Damaturu was awarded in 2006, it is about 12 years, this contract has expired.
“The problem TCN had in the past was that it awarded contracts to incompetent companies, but under current TCN management we have changed the way we do contract now.
“Payment of tuition fees for undergraduate/postgraduate studies shall be subject to a maximum limit of $25,000.00 per semester,” the Manual states.
The expansion of international card limits also reflects growing confidence among lenders that foreign exchange liquidity has improved enough to support retail dollar transactions.
Speaking recently at the BusinessDay 14th Annual CEO Forum in Lagos, CBN Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the CBN said buying and selling activities now increasingly determine outcomes in the foreign exchange market, unlike in the past when market participants relied heavily on routine Central Bank interventions.
According to Cardoso, Nigeria’s net foreign exchange reserves have risen from just over $3 billion at the start of the reform programme to more than $40 billion, while gross reserves have climbed to about $52 billion, providing stronger confidence for investors and enabling the Central Bank to reserve interventions for periods of market stress rather than day-to-day liquidity management.
The restoration and expansion of international naira card spending limits are increasingly being seen as one of the clearest signs that the benefits of the CBN’s foreign exchange reforms are beginning to reach households, students and businesses making legitimate cross-border payments.
The Secretary-General and Chief Executive Officer, WEC, Dr Angela Wilkinson, disclosed this in a statement, last Thursday.
“Nigeria’s participation comes at a pivotal time as the country seeks to expand energy access, strengthen energy security, accelerate gas development and mobilise the capital required for industrialisation and sustainable economic growth.
“WEC Nigeria will convene leaders from across the energy ecosystem, apply the WEC’s globally recognised Energy Trilemma framework to Nigeria’s unique context, and promote evidence-based dialogue, practical collaboration and informed policymaking.
“It will also ensure that Nigerian and broader African perspectives contribute meaningfully to global energy conversations,” she said.
Wilkinson expressed confidence that Nigeria would play a significant leadership role at the World Energy Congress scheduled for Riyadh in April 2027 and beyond.
The statement also quoted the Chairman of WEC Nigeria, Isa, as describing the country’s participation as an opportunity to deepen national and African leadership within the global energy community through practical solutions tailored to regional development priorities.
He said the platform would promote collaboration across sectors and attract sustainable investments into Nigeria’s energy sector.
The Chief Executive Officer of WEC Nigeria, Wunti, was quoted in the statement as saying that the council would connect leadership, evidence and investment to build a secure, affordable and sustainable energy system.
“This system will be capable of driving economic growth and shared prosperity.”
According to him, the platform will also connect Nigerian institutions and businesses with international knowledge, technology, partnerships and investment opportunities through the World Energy Council’s global network.
Recall that WEC, founded in 1923, is the world’s oldest independent and impartial community of energy leaders and practitioners, advancing informed, collaborative and practical action across the global energy system.