According to TCN, the second system failure occurred when the Odukpani-Ikot Ekpene 330kV transmission line tripped, cutting off electricity generation and transmission from the Odukpani power station to the grid.
A statement Wednesday by the company’s General Manager, Public Affairs, Mrs. Ndidi Mbah, however, assured Nigerians that restoration of the grid had reached an advanced stage.
TCN added that it had also commenced investigations to determine the exact cause of the system disturbance.
“The system disturbance happened at a time when work on the Western Gas Pipeline (Ecscavos-Lagos Pipeline System) by the Nigerian Gas Processing and Transportation Company Ltd (NGPTC), which caused a system collapse at about 21.17 hours on Tuesday was yet to be completed.
“The grid would have withstood the Odukpani infraction, if generation along Lagos region was available,” said TCN in the statement.
TCN explained that NGPTC, the gas supply and marketing subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), had indicated that a contractor had been mobilised to repair the affected segment of the Escravos-Lagos pipeline, so that gas supply to the Omotosho, Egbin, and Olorunsogo I and II thermal power stations could be restored.
“According to NGC, work would be carried out day and night and is expected to be completed within 24 hours,” TCN assured the public.
The TCN stated that with the support of the Ministries of Power and Finance it had embarked on the implementation of a Transmission Rehabilitation and Expansion Programme (TREP) aimed at expanding, rehabilitating and stabilising the national grid, and appealed to Nigerians to be patient with it.
The national grid had collapsed on Tuesday night following a fire incident reported by the NGPTC on its Escravos-Lagos Pipeline System near Okada, Edo State.
NNPC had attributed the incident to a bush fire, which spread from Abakila in Ondo State.
The incident led to the shutdown of the pipeline supplying gas to the 1,320MW-capacity Egbin power station in Lagos; 676MW-capacity Olorunsogo NIPP station; 338MW-capacity, Olorunsogo I power station; 450MW-capacity Omotosho NIPP station; and the 338MW-capacity, Omotosho I station.I
t was also gathered that before the Tuesday fire incident, a peak generation of 4,685.3MW was recorded and wheeled out to the grid on Monday, while the lowest generation on the same day was 3,667.5MW.
It was also gathered that at exactly 06:00 hours on Tuesday a total of 3,749.90MW was generated and transmitted to the grid for distribution to the 11 distribution companies.
Investigations revealed that TCN made efforts to sustain minimal supply after the closure of the Escravos pipeline, using generation from the hydroelectric power stations and other gas-fired plants located outside South-west but these efforts failed at exactly 14.19 hours Wednesday when the country was plunged into total darkness.
A source at TCN told media that officials of the company worked hard to restore the system with generation from the hydro stations and other plants but the efforts failed.
“As it stands, there is no supply to the National Control Centre (NCC), Osogbo, and no supply to the main regional control centres at Shiroro, Ikeja West and Benin.
“Lagos is in total darkness and the same thing applies to the North and other parts of the South. So, the country is in darkness,” he said.
A source in one of the distribution companies also told media that they would give TCN reasonable time to restore power to the grid before raising the alarm over zero electricity supply.
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