Bayelsa faces prolonged power outage as vandals destroy 13 transmission towers

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) says Bayelsa state will face a prolonged power outage following the destruction of 13 transmission towers along the Ahoada-Yenagoa 132kV double circuit transmission line by vandals.

In a statement on Wednesday, Ndidi Mbah, general manager of public affairs at TCN, said the incident was first reported by the youth president of the Ukpeli community in Rivers state on Monday.

Mbah said the situation was confirmed after a team led by Emmanuel Akpa, general manager of the Port Harcourt transmission region, visited the site and saw that all 13 towers from T52 to T64 were affected.

She said of the 13 vandalised towers, nine towers have collapsed completely, while four could collapse at any moment.

Mbah added that the Ahoada-Yenagoa 132kV double circuit transmission line is crucial for evacuating power from the Ahoada transmission substation to the Yenagoa substation, which supplies electricity to the entire Bayelsa state.

“Given the extent of the destruction to the towers and the ongoing work on previously vandalised transmission towers, it may take several months for TCN to complete the rebuilding and stringing of the towers to restore power supply to the state,” Mbah said.

Sule Abdulaziz, managing director and chief executive officer (CEO) of TCN, described the incident as a national disaster and urged the governments of Rivers and Bayelsa states to assist the company in curbing the vandalism of its installations which has been “increasingly alarming and overwhelming.”

Abdulaziz said TCN had recently responded to the vandalism and subsequent collapse of towers T97 to T99 on the same line route on July 29, with work still ongoing to rebuild the vandalised towers.

“Additionally, a new contract was recently awarded for the reinforcement of towers 19-31 on the Ahoada-Yenagoa line, where tower members had been vandalised and stolen. Despite these ongoing efforts, the recent vandalism of the thirteen towers presents a significant challenge to TCN,” the CEO said.

According to the statement, the 13 vandalised towers are located in several communities, including Okobe in Ahoada east, Emezhi 1 in Ahoada west, and Mbiama in Ahoada west local government areas of Rivers state, as well as the Igbogene community in Bayelsa state.

Mbah appealed to security operatives, host communities, traditional rulers, state governments and all stakeholders to collaborate with TCN in the fight against power installation vandalism, adding that urgent action is required.