RismadarVoice Reporters
June 12, 2026
The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has urged the Federal Government and the National Assembly to strengthen legal safeguards for critical electricity infrastructure, warning that vandalism, sabotage, and encroachment on transmission corridors continue to disrupt power supply and increase operational costs.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of TCN, Engr. Sule Ahmed Abdulaziz, appealed for a four-day Parliamentary and Stakeholders’ Engagement Summit on Power Sector Reforms in Nigeria.
He said repeated attacks on transmission facilities have remained a major setback to stable electricity supply and have placed additional financial pressure on the power sector.
“Vandalism and sabotage of transmission infrastructure continue to disrupt power supply, increase repair costs and undermine investments in the sector,” Abdulaziz said.
He also highlighted the growing problem of encroachment on transmission Right-of-Way (RoW), describing it as a serious threat to safety, maintenance operations, and future expansion of the national grid.
“Persistent encroachment on transmission Rights-of-Way creates safety risks, hinders maintenance activities and constrains future network expansion,” he noted, calling for coordinated action across all levels of government alongside a stronger legal framework.
Abdulaziz urged lawmakers to establish a unified national framework for the protection of transmission corridors to safeguard critical assets and ensure long-term system stability.
He also addressed concerns about the transmission network’s capacity, arguing that it is not the primary constraint in Nigeria’s electricity value chain.
Citing figures from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), he stated that while the country’s installed generation capacity stands at 13,625 megawatts, the highest level ever generated and delivered to the national grid is 5,801.84 megawatts.
According to him, TCN’s current wheeling capacity of 8,700 megawatts is sufficient to transmit more power than is presently being generated.
“The implication is clear: the national grid can currently transmit significantly more power than has ever been generated and supplied to it,” he said.
Abdulaziz added that TCN has expanded its capacity from about 7,000MW to 8,700MW through strategic investments backed by the Federal Government and development partners.
He disclosed that the company commissioned 82 transformers between January 2024 and November 2025, adding about 8,500MVA of transmission capacity to the national grid.
He further revealed that TCN has secured over $1.4 billion in development financing from international partners to support ongoing transmission expansion and modernisation projects.
Despite these gains, he acknowledged persistent challenges in the power sector, including funding constraints, foreign exchange pressures, gas shortages, and inefficiencies within the distribution segment.
