TCN rejects claims of transmission grid constraints

The Transmission Company of Nigeria has pushed back against claims that the country’s transmission network is the major obstacle to improved electricity supply, insisting that the national grid currently has the capacity to wheel 8,700 megawatts of electricity, far above the highest power ever generated and delivered to it.

Speaking at a four-day Parliamentary and Stakeholders’ Engagement Summit on Power Sector Reforms in Nigeria, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of TCN, Sule Abdulaziz, on Monday in Lagos, said available industry data showed that transmission was not the primary constraint in the country’s electricity value chain.

Abdulaziz argued that while public discourse often portrays the transmission segment as the weakest link in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry, verified figures from the sector paint a different picture.

According to him, Nigeria’s total installed generation capacity stands at 13,625MW, but the highest volume of electricity ever generated and delivered to the grid remains 5,801.84MW.

He noted that the record was achieved on March 4, 2025, when TCN also transmitted a historic 128,370.75 megawatt-hours of electricity within a single day. The TCN boss further argued that while Nigeria’s installed generation capacity exceeds 13,000MW, actual electricity dispatch remains significantly lower because of challenges affecting the entire electricity value chain.

“Before presenting TCN’s achievements, I wish to address directly and factually a narrative that has gained currency in public discourse: the characterisation of transmission as the singular or primary constraint in Nigeria’s electricity challenges. The data does not support this characterisation, and this Committee deserves the full picture.

“The following verified sector-wide capacity figures establish the true position. According to NERC’s February 2026 Operational Factsheet, Nigeria’s total installed generation capacity stands at 13,625MW. Yet the highest volume of electricity ever produced and delivered to the national grid, in the entire history of Nigeria’s electricity industry, stands at 5,801.84MW.

“The conclusion these figures compel is unambiguous. Nigeria’s national transmission grid today has the capacity to wheel 8,700MW, yet the highest volume of electricity ever generated and delivered to that grid has never exceeded 5,801.84MW. The transmission network has consistently wheeled every megawatt made available to it. Our grid has the capacity and our operators have the competence. The transmission network of Nigeria is ready,” he stated.

The TCN boss said the company had increased the nation’s bulk power wheeling capacity from about 7,000MW to a confirmed 8,700MW, representing an additional 1,700MW evacuation capacity added to the national grid.

He described the feat as the result of years of infrastructure investment, engineering improvements and support from the Federal Government and international development partners.

“Through deliberate, sustained and strategically phased infrastructure investment, TCN has successfully increased the nation’s bulk wheeling capacity from approximately 7,000MW to a confirmed 8,700MW. This represents a net addition of 1,700MW to the grid’s evacuation capability, installed, commissioned and fully operational capacity that benefits every zone of the country today.

“On 4 March 2025, at 21:15 hours, the Nigerian electricity transmission network achieved a new all-time peak wheeling record of 5,801.84 megawatts, the highest volume of electricity ever transmitted across the national grid in the history of Nigeria’s electricity industry. On that same day, TCN set a second historic record: delivering 128,370.75 megawatt-hours of energy, the highest single-day energy throughput ever recorded on the national grid.

“These twin records are not coincidental. They are the direct and measurable outcome of TCN’s years of infrastructure investment, engineering diligence, and operational discipline. They stand as incontrovertible proof that Nigeria’s transmission network is capable of handling substantially greater volumes of power, and that TCN’s team has the expertise to manage it safely and efficiently,” Abdulaziz said.

He further disclosed that between January 2024 and November 2025, the company commissioned 82 new power transformers nationwide, adding approximately 8,500MVA of transformation capacity to the grid.

According to him, the deployment represents one of the most extensive transformer installation programmes in the history of the transmission company.

“Between January 2024 and November 2025, a period of just 23 months, TCN commissioned 82 new power transformers across the country, adding approximately 8,500MVA of transformation capacity to the national grid. This is an unprecedented pace of transformer deployment in TCN’s operational history and represents one of the most concentrated periods of grid strengthening the country has ever witnessed,” he said.

The transmission company also highlighted a number of strategic projects completed across the country, including the Bauchi 330/132/33kV substation, the Oyo Town transmission substation, the University of Ibadan mobile substation, Sapade substation and upgrades at the Sagamu substation.

It added that critical transmission line projects such as the Delta-Effurun 132kV line reconductoring, the Benin-Ajaokuta 330kV line reinforcement and the Ihovbor/Benin-Ajaokuta Turn-In Turn-Out lines had improved grid flexibility and power evacuation capabilities.

Abdulaziz particularly described the commissioning of the Ihovbor TITO lines in April 2026 as a major milestone for the power sector.

“In addition to the transformer rollout, TCN has commissioned several new and upgraded substations that have materially extended the reach and reliability of the national grid. These include: Bauchi 330/132/33kV Substation, a new facility with 250 MW capacity, connected via Turn-In Turn-Out line, serving a critical load centre in the North-East; Oyo Town Substation, completed and successfully connected to the national grid, improving supply to Oyo State; University of Ibadan Substation, 63 MVA mobile substation commissioned, providing dedicated supply to the university and surrounding communities; Sapade Substation, 63 MVA mobile substation. Federal Executive Council has approved the permanent 2×60 MVA substation project, which is now underway;

“The commissioning of the Ihovbor TITO lines is particularly significant. It represents a major network reinforcement that improves the grid’s ability to manage contingencies, reroute power flows under fault conditions, and support future network expansion in one of Nigeria’s most strategically important generation zones.

“A defining feature of TCN’s recent infrastructure delivery is the scale and depth of international development finance mobilised in support of Nigeria’s transmission network. TCN has successfully attracted, maintained, and deployed financing from four of the world’s leading multilateral and bilateral development institutions,” he said.

The TCN chief also revealed that the company had attracted more than $1.4bn in development financing from international partners, including the World Bank, the African Development Bank, the Japan International Cooperation Agency and the French Development Agency.

According to him, the investments are being channelled into grid rehabilitation, transmission expansion, substation upgrades, power corridor improvements and modernisation projects.

“These four partnerships collectively represent in excess of $1.4bn in committed development finance directed at Nigeria’s transmission infrastructure, one of the largest concentrations of multilateral investment in any single component of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry.

“The sustained commitment of these institutions is itself a powerful endorsement of TCN’s governance, delivery capacity and institutional credibility in the international arena,” he added.