NERC to hold public hearing on incessant grid collapses

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), on Saturday announced its plans to conduct a public investigation into the incessant grid collapses that have led to widespread power outages across the country.

NERC’s decision follows the latest grid collapse which marked the third incident in one week.

Expressing concern, NERC in a statement posted on its official X handle on Saturday, noted that the disturbances threaten to reverse recent advancements in grid stability and infrastructure improvements.

It stated that while efforts to restore electricity have made significant progress, power was largely restored by 1 PM in 33 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

“In line with the provisions of the Electricity Act 2023, NERC is in the process of unbundling the System Operator function from the Transmission Company of Nigeria Plc. This move aims to foster better grid management and attract optimized investments in infrastructure.

“The forthcoming public hearing will seek to uncover both immediate and underlying causes of the recurring grid disturbances. Details regarding the date and venue of the hearing will be published soon in national dailies, and all stakeholders are encouraged to participate in this critical dialogue”, NERC stated.

Meanwhile, the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) in a statement issued by its General Manager, Public Affairs, Ndidi Mbah, said that the latest grid disturbance was caused by the explosion at Jebba Transmission Station.

TCN said, “The Transmission Company of Nigeria hereby states that the national grid experienced a temporary disturbance at about 8:15 am, today, 19th Oct. 2024.

“According to the report from the NCC, the bus section of a current transformer exploded at 330kV Jebba Transmission Substation and as expected, the protection system was activated, and this promptly opened the busbars to curtail the explosion, thereby preventing the outbreak of fire and further damage to adjacent equipment.

“The action of the protection system led to a temporary disturbance on the grid.
Our engineers at Jebba have successfully carried out switchings, isolating the faulty current transformer.

“They have equally reconfigured the busbar arrangement, restoring power supply to the station, and other parts of the grid.”