By Uzoma Marvellous
The prolonged power outage affecting FESTAC Town, Amuwo Odofin and neighbouring communities is the result of ongoing transmission upgrades and persistent vandalism of underground electricity cables, Eko Electricity Distribution Plc (EKEDP) has said.
In a statement yesterday, the General Manager, Corporate Communications, EKEDP, Abiola Aloba, said the supply disruption was caused mainly by improvement works at the national transmission level, with repeated cable vandalism worsening the situation.
He said: “Recent supply challenges in FESTAC have been driven principally by upgrades and improvement activities at the national transmission level. These outages were, however, compounded by sustained vandalism of underground distribution cables.”
According to Aloba, the FESTAC axis “regrettably records the highest incidence” of underground cable vandalism across the EKEDP network.
He disclosed that the company had taken steps to improve electricity supply, including completing and commissioning the FESTAC 3 feeder, which will provide an alternative source of power from the Ojo Transmission Station.
According to him, “The new FESTAC 3 feeder, radiating from Ojo Transmission Station to provide an alternative source of supply to FESTAC Town, has been completed and commissioned, with energisation awaiting final load-balancing arrangements and TCN approvals.”
Aloba added that supply on the FESTAC 1 33kV feeder had been partially restored after engineers isolated a faulty underground cable, while fault location and restoration work continue daily.
He said EKEDP had invested hundreds of millions of naira in the FESTAC network to improve electricity supply and strengthen infrastructure.
On security, Aloba said the company had escalated the vandalism of its facilities to the Lagos State Police Command.
He stated: “The Company has escalated the vandalism crisis to the highest levels of the Lagos State Police Command, with arrests already made and suspects in custody.”
The development comes amid growing concerns among residents and businesses over the prolonged blackout in FESTAC, Amuwo Odofin and adjoining communities.
Aloba said EKEDP had continued to engage residents, community leaders, the FESTAC District Business Manager, the traditional institution of Amuwo Odofin and the local government to address the situation.
He noted that the company’s “door remains open to every resident and recognised community body through established channels.”
While acknowledging the constitutional right of residents to peaceful protest, he appealed for calm and urged all parties to ensure that engagements remain lawful.
“The Company appeals to all parties to keep every form of engagement lawful, respectful and safe for residents, staff and electricity infrastructure alike, so that the shared goal of stable power supply is not set back by avoidable disruption,” he said.
EKEDP reaffirmed its commitment to restoring and sustaining improved electricity supply to FESTAC and neighbouring communities, assuring customers that it would continue to provide updates on restoration efforts.
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