North blackout: 19 govs meet, President deploys troops against vandals

A power transmission system

Stephen Angbulu, Adebayo, Folorunsho-Francis, Godwin Isenyo, Chima Azubuike, Tukur Muntari, Samuel Ese and Ikenna Obianeri

The governors of the 19 northern states on Monday called for the diversification of energy following persistent blackouts in 17 states of the region recently.

Apart from Niger and Kwara, 17 states in the North are without electricity supply in the last two weeks.

The worst affected are Kaduna, Kano, Jigawa, Gombe and Katsina, who have not had supply in the last two weeks.

Others are Sokoto, Zamfara, Bauchi, Yobe, Borno, Adamawa, Taraba, Niger, Plateau, Nasarawa, Kogi and Benue.

The PUNCH reports that commercial activities are in dire state in the region following the outage occasioned by vandalism of the power transmission line in parts of northern Nigeria.

As part of efforts to resolve the issue, the Governor of Gombe State, Muhammadu Yahaya, who is also the Chairman of the Northern States Governors’ Forum, convened a joint meeting involving the 18 other governors from the region and traditional rulers in Kaduna State on Monday.

Sultan of Sokoto and Chairman of Northern Traditional Rulers Council, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar lll and other prominent monarchs from the region, including Shehu of Borno, Umar El-Kanemi; Emir of Zazzau, Nuhu Bamali; Ohinoyi of Ebira land, Etsu Nupe, Yahaya Abubakar, Emir of Kazaure and Emir of Bauchi were also at the meeting.

Among the regional governors who attended the meeting are Bauchi Governor, Bala Mohammed, Borno’s Prof. Babagana Zulum, Nasarawa’s Abdullahi Sule, Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State, Gombe’s Mohammed Yahaya, Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna, Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, Yobe governor Maimala Bumi and Kwara’s AbdulRahman AbdulRasaq. Others were represented by their respective deputy governors.

The governors and monarchs called on the Federal Government to address the current electricity power blackout in northern states as well as invest in additional transmission lines and diversified energy supply to ensure improved electricity supply.

A communiqué signed by Governor Yahaya on behalf of the group read, “Forum resolves to call on the Federal Government and relevant Agencies to urgently address the current electricity power blackout affecting most of the Northern States due to vandalisation of electricity transmission infrastructure.

“This matter not only underscores the vulnerability of critical infrastructure but also the need to build additional transmission lines and diversify our energy supply so as to better connect our region and improve our energy resilience.”

Presidential candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party in the 2023 elections, Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso, expressed sadness over the massive blackout.

In a message posted on his X page on Monday, Kwankwaso described the development as disheartening.

He advised governors to prioritise alternative power sources to address energy needs.

He wrote, “It is very disheartening that many parts of Northern Nigeria are in total darkness today due to vandalism on the important 330kV Shiroro-Kaduna power line that supplies the states of Kano and Kaduna and another line that supplies Bauchi, Gombe and other parts of the northeast.

“This situation has been further compounded by the high cost of petrol and diesel in Nigeria, which has further plunged homes into darkness and forced factories to close down.

“The time this crisis has taken to be addressed underscores the huge deficit of capacity our power sector has in order to address large scale problems. This must be addressed to avoid any future disruption.”

Kwankwaso added, “It is about time that we look into alternative power sources to address our energy needs and we need to exploit the abundant resources available to this country.

“I wish to encourage all state governments and private investors to invest in alternative electricity sources, just like we did in Kano by installing two turbines in the Challawa Gorge and Tiga Dams in order to reduce the reliance on our inadequate and aged energy sources.”

Also, President Bola Tinubu on Monday directed the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, and relevant agencies to speed up the pace of work to restore electricity to all the affected states in the North.

He warned that the government would no longer condone deliberate sabotage and destruction of public utilities.

Tinubu gave the directive at a meeting with Adelabu, who briefed him on efforts made by the Transmission Company of Nigeria to repair the damaged Shiroro-Kaduna transmission lines at the Aso Rock Villa, on Monday.

He expressed concern over the blackout in the northern region of Nigeria in the last week.

“The President directed a long-term solution to the problem,” a statement by Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, read on Monday evening.

“He is now leading efforts to end the disruption that has paralysed social and economic activities, summoning the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, and the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.

“The President has directed the Minister of Power and relevant agencies to speed up the pace of work to restore electricity to all the affected states in the North.

“President Tinubu is saddened by the reports of vandalism and willful destruction of power infrastructure and other public assets that caused the unfortunate blackout.”

Tinubu charged TCN engineers not to relent in bringing immediate relief to the people who need electricity to sustain their social and economic activities.

The Presidency stated that to ensure that restoration work continued unhindered, Tinubu “directed the National Security Adviser to work with the Army and Air Force to deploy adequate security personnel, including aerial cover, to protect the engineers who are fixing the damaged transmission line.”

Also on Monday, the Federal Government said it had secured the commitment of contractors and financiers to invest between $1bn and $2bn to install 50MW in each of the 19 northern states.

It said, when operational, the solar plants would use the region’s long daily hours of sunlight and reduce the load on the struggling national grid.

“We have interested contractors and financiers that are ready to install 100 megawatt each for each of the 19 northern states,” Adelabu, told journalists after he briefed President Bola Tinubu at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja.

When our correspondent asked the minister for the total amount financiers had so far committed to the cause, he replied, “It is between $1bn and $2bn.”

Adelabu said he was at the Villa to discuss the “disturbance” in electricity supply to 17 northern states.

A widespread power failure is impacting 17 northern states in Nigeria, leaving millions without electricity as they continually contend with a prolonged blackout.

Authorities blamed vandals who damaged the critical Shiroro-Kaduna transmission line, a major conduit supplying electricity to northern Nigeria.

Security issue

More so, swift repair has been challenging due to security concerns for repair crews, the FG says.

Adelabu said his office had since coordinated with the National Security Advisor, Chief of Defence Staff, and other military top shots to provide necessary security coverage, enabling the Transmission Company of Nigeria to begin urgent repairs with plans to restore power within days.

Adelabu said, “I briefed Mr. President on the issue of the disturbance in electric supply to the northern part of Nigeria. We discussed the root cause of this, which was basically due to vandalisation of the transmission lines of Shiroro-Kaduna line.

“Why it has escalated to this level is because we’ve not been able to guarantee security of lives of those that will work there. But Mr President has assured me that he has instructed the NSA, the Chief of Defence Staff, the Chief of Staff, Chief of Air Staff, to provide the required security for the people that will fix the demolished line.

“With the provision of full security, the TCN staff will have the confidence, together with the contractors, to go to the field and fix it.”

Despite this guarantee, the minister explained that restoring power might take a few more days.

“In terms of the timeline for fixing Shiroro, let me tell you, fixing a transmission line takes within three to five days.

“We should finish by then if we work under standard temperature and pressure, when there are no security threats, when you are sure of your safety in the area,” he said.

Adelabu sought patience from residents of the affected 17 states. Adding that while the Shiroro-Kaduna line underwent interim repair, the FG planned to upgrade its aging facilities and also route power to the north through the Ikot-Ekpene substation.

He said, “We have also explored the alternative line of providing power to the north through the Ikot-Ekpene substation supplied from the Calabar plant, but the line got caught along the line, and we are also trying to fix that.

“At the last FEC (Federal Executive Council) meeting, one of the approvals for the ministry of power was actually the upgrade of the Shiroro-Kaduna transmission line, which is the major line that supplies electricity to the northern part of the country.

“We already have approval for this. It is one of the oldest transmission lines that we have in Nigeria, and we believe that it requires an upgrade…we got an approval to fix the line on a permanent basis. Once this is done, I believe that power to the North will be more stable than we’re experiencing right now.”

Old facilities

The Minister of Power also acknowledged that Nigeria’s aging infrastructure was a core challenge to maintaining reliable electricity supply.

He explained that the national grid, now over 50 years old, was hampered by deteriorating transmission lines, unstable towers, and outdated transformers and substations.

Notably, the transformer that recently exploded in Jebba had been in service for 47 years.

He said while efforts were underway to upgrade these critical components, he noted that a complete overhaul couldn’t happen overnight.

He also shared plans to establish a “super grid,” an alternative backup system that would allow power transmission through a separate route if the national grid encountered problems.

Additionally, he emphasised the global shift from centralised grids, outlining a vision for regionalising Nigeria’s grid.

This approach, he argued, would create isolated state-level grids, preventing issues in one area from affecting the entire network.

Until these long-term solutions were implemented, the FG would continue to manage the grid to reduce the frequency of power outages, Adelabu said.

When questioned about compensation for customers affected by recent blackouts, particularly those on Band A, the minister confirmed that discussions were underway with the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission and power distribution companies, DISCOs.

Some states in the south have also experienced outage in recent months. It was learnt that power outage has persisted for over three months in Bayelsa State following the vandalisation of 13 power towers in the state and neighbouring Rivers State.

In Anambra, commercial and economic activities were grounded for almost five days as a result of the total blackout that hit the state in the aftermath of the collapse of the national grid.

It was learnt that the blackout, which started on Sunday, left many residents across major cities of Onitsha, Nnewi and Awka stranded for over five days as they could not power their appliances and water supply was cut off from many communities as there was no power to pump water.

However, normalcy is gradually returning as power has partially been restored in some areas.

APC, opposition clash

Reacting, the National Youth Leader of the Labour Party, Kennedy Ahanotu, stated that the blackout could be attributed to policy failure.

Ahanotu said it was unfortunate that Tinubu made several promises to Nigerians but has failed to even address the issue of power supply despite an upward review of its tariff.

The LP National Working Committee member also expressed fears that if the Federal Government failed to rectify the problem on time, people may start seeing it as a deliberate sabotage against the Northerners.

He said, “Honestly, all these things boil down to policy failure. This government promised people power. Even in some parts of Abuja, people can’t even recharge their prepaid meters. I don’t know the reason. The moment your credit finishes, you can’t recharge.

“I hope Mr President will sit up and address some of these because people may start seeing it as ethnic hate, which I don’t think it is. I know anytime something happens in the North, attention will be given to it. So, I hope this will mark the beginning of a final solution to the power problem we have in Nigeria.

“Again, what do you expect when Nigeria can’t generate up to 10,000 megawatts? In a relay race, the person who finishes before handing over has a role to play in the success of the next person. So, I feel that the electricity issue may not be solely caused by this administration. But then, we need to see a concerted effort. You increased the electricity tariff and cannot provide electricity. Is it not unfortunate?”

The Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, Ibrahim Abdullahi, shared Ahanotu’s sentiment.

He said, “It is unfortunate that families and livelihoods are suffering. This is the experience in most of these towns and cities. It is not something one can even find adjectives to describe. The country has been unfortunate to have the APC and particularly Tinubu at the helm of affairs. There are no mincing words here.”

The National Publicity Secretary of the New Nigeria People’s Party, Ladipo Johnson, also expressed concerns over the issue, which he described as disturbing.

“I don’t know what the actual problem is but if it lingers for two weeks, it doesn’t speak well about the government’s response time. They may claim that the power companies have been privatized but at the end of the day, the government is the overseer of the industry. We hope that the whole situation will be corrected as quickly as possible.”

But the National Publicity Director of the ruling APC, Bala Ibrahim insisted that power supply since the coming of the present administration had improved remarkably.

According to him, the present blackout in the North has been attributed to vandalism and sabotage.

He said, “If the opposition says this failure was because the policy on power is poor, they are being economical with the truth. As a party, we have come up with a policy to address the issue of insufficient power. If they are honest, they will admit that there are changes in the volume and quantum of power generated and distributed across the country.

“With the speed with which the government is pushing to see to the actualisation and benefits of this IPP, you will know that the government and the party mean business. They want to get the country out of the darkness. I am happy it is not a case of ‘no power’ but a disruption in the distribution of power, which is attributed to vandalism and sabotage.

“No government will fold its arms and submit to the caprices of saboteurs. I’m sure the government is going to do something to address that issue quickly because of the backlash. We know people are not happy but this is not the right time to keep them continuously angry and unhappy.

“So the government is going to do something. I’m sure about that. It is not our duty as a party to say this is what the government is doing or plans to do. But as far as the party is concerned, the policy on power is good and is being implemented well.”

Punch Nigeria Limited