The Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO), an arm of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), has attributed the national grid collapse experienced earlier on Tuesday to the simultaneous tripping of multiple 330kV transmission lines, alongside the disconnection of some grid-connected generating units.
In a statement released via its official social media platforms, NISO said operational reports showed that the combination of these incidents destabilised the power system and led to the collapse at the time indicated. According to the operator, the disturbance triggered an automatic shutdown designed to protect critical infrastructure from further damage.
NISO disclosed that restoration activities commenced at about 13:15 hours, in line with established grid restoration and recovery procedures. As of the latest update, electricity supply had been successfully restored to several locations, including Abuja, Osogbo, Benin, Onitsha, Sapele, Jebba, Kainji, Shiroro, and parts of Lagos. The operator added that restoration efforts were progressing steadily in other parts of the country.
“A detailed investigation into the root cause and contributory factors of the disturbance is currently ongoing,” the statement said.
Meanwhile, data obtained from NISO indicated gradual recovery of power generation, with seven generating companies (GenCos) producing a combined output of 1,118.80 megawatts at the time of filing this report.
Distribution load profiles also showed improvement, as the 11 electricity distribution companies (DisCos) recorded a total load allocation of 1,540 megawatts. Ikeja DisCo received the highest allocation at 350MW, followed by Abuja DisCo with 270MW, Ibadan DisCo with 240MW, and Eko DisCo with 200MW.
Port Harcourt DisCo had yet to receive allocation, while Yola and Jos DisCos recorded the lowest loads at 30MW each. Enugu, Benin, Kano, and Kaduna DisCos recorded allocations of 100MW, 70MW, 100MW, and 150MW respectively.
