TCN receives 15 new transformers to boost power supply

By Matthew Eloyi

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has received 15 new power transformers to help the country’s electricity supply.

TCN’s General Manager, Public Affairs, Mrs Ndidi Mbah, made the announcement in a statement in Abuja in mid-February 2022.

The transformers, according to Mbah, included ten 60 MegaVolt Ampree (MVA) 132/33KV capacity transformers and five 150MVA 330/132KV capacity transformers.

The transformers, retrieved from the Apapa ports, were delivered to TCN Central Store in Ojo, Lagos State, for onward delivery to various TCN sites nationwide.

According to the acting Managing Director of the TCN, Sule Abdulaziz, the contract for the supply of the transformers, under the Nigerian Electricity Transmission Project (NETAP), was funded by the World Bank.

He said that TCN would decide on the project sites the transformers would be installed.

The ten 60MVA 132/3KkV power transformers and the five 50MVA 330/132KV transformers, according to Abdulaziz, will contribute 637 Mega Watts (MW) and 850MW respectively to the transmission network, once installed and linked to the grid.

Abdulaziz explained that in August 2021, the World Bank also funded transformer supply contracts which brought in 10 60MVA132/33kV transformers and 25 earthing transformers.

He said out of the ten 60MVA transformers, five were installed in Karu and Gombe sub-stations, while one each were being installed in Kano and Lagos States.

In his words, “This is the first time in the history of TCN that it took delivery of large numbers of transformers within a short period.

“These are milestone achievements for TCN, as it strives to implement its short-term development plan under the Nigerian Electricity Grid Maintenance, Expansion, and Rehabilitation Programme (NEGMERP).

“The World Bank-sponsored NETAP project is one of the TCN donor-funded projects aimed at expanding the transmission grid while also prioritising maintenance of the existing transmission infrastructures.”

TCN was also implementing many projects supported by the Agence Française de Développement (AFD), a French development organization, according to Abdulaziz.

He also stated that the African Development Bank (AfDB)-funded projects were moving forward quickly, and that the TCN would shortly sign contracts for 330KV and 132KV substations.

The procurement of consultants for projects sponsored by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), according to the MD, would also begin soon.