Northern Nigeria blackout: TCN discovers fault at transmission line, commences repair

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) says its linesmen have identified the fault responsible for the power outage on the Ugwuaji-Apir 330-kilovolt (kV) double circuit transmission line.

On Tuesday, TCN reported power outage in the northeast, northwest and parts of north-central after the 330 kV Ugwaji–Apir double circuit transmission lines 1 and 2 tripped around 4:53am “due to a fault”.

The power outage occurred on Monday.

Providing an update on Wednesday, Ndidi Mbah, TCN’s general manager of public affairs, said the fault was discovered in the Igumale area of Benue state.

According to Mbah, the fault area, which measures one span, was identified as a snapped 330kv transmission line in the swampy forest of Igumale, Benue state.

“A team of linesmen from the Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, has discovered the fault on the Ugwuaji – Apir 330KV Double Circuit transmission line, at about 5pm this evening, in the Igumale area of Benue State,” the statement reads.

“The fault area of the transmission line, which measures about one span, was found to be a snapped 330kV transmission line located in the swampy forest of Igumale.”

Following the discovery, she said preparations are underway to gather the equipment and materials needed for TCN to begin repair work at the incident site on Thursday.

“Due to the difficult and swampy nature of the terrain, TCN would require to move a bulldozer and other materials for the repair works from Enugu Regional office of TCN to the site of the incident,” Mbah said.

“A Hiab vehicle would also be moved to Igumale to help TCN properly tension the transmission line.”

Mbah added that previous efforts by two teams sent to identify the cause of the forced outage had been unsuccessful until Wednesday evening.

The general manager reaffirmed TCN’s commitment to addressing the situation quickly, noting that the company is urgently organising the necessary materials for the repair work.

Mbah also expressed gratitude to the government and electricity consumers in the affected areas for their patience.