• TCN: Facility to ensure reliable supply to 70,000 residents
Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja and Peter Uzoho in Lagos
The federal government yesterday commissioned upgraded transmission infrastructure at Alausa and Lekki in Lagos, adding a combined 272MW of bulk power capacity to two of the state’s most economically significant corridors.
At Alausa, an existing 30MVA transformer was replaced with a new 100MVA unit, lifting the station’s total capacity from 135MVA to 205MVA and increasing bulk power available to Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC) by 80MW.
In the same vein, in Lekki the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) installed an additional 2x60MVA, 132/33kV power transformers, alongside nine new 33kV feeders, doubling the substation’s 132/33kV capacity from 120MVA to 240MVA, an increase of approximately 192MW.
Speaking at the events, the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, said the investments were deliberate steps to strengthen corridors that drive Nigeria’s economy and to remove transmission bottlenecks that have long stranded generation.
At Alausa, Tegbe said the project was more than an engineering milestone and described it as a strategic investment in Ikeja, the nerve centre of governance in Lagos and one of the most economically consequential corridors in the country.
“Alausa is not just another location on the electricity network. It sits within one of the most economically and administratively important parts of Lagos State. This axis supports a dense concentration of government institutions, commercial establishments, businesses, residential communities and economic activities,” he said.
He said the intervention increased bulk power available to IKEDC by 80MW for onward delivery to consumers.
“The multiplier effect of an additional 80MW of bulk power availability is more than an ordinary technical statistic. Behind these numbers are businesses, industries, hospitals, schools, offices, markets, technology companies, malls, artisans and people whose livelihoods depend upon electricity,” Tegbe said.
Also in Lekki, the minister inaugurated an additional 2×60MVA, 132/33kV transformers at the 330/132/33kV transmission substation, along with nine new 33kV feeders. He said Lekki represents the Nigeria the administration is building towards: more industrial, more commercially active, and more attractive to capital.
“Today, we are commissioning capacity – capacity for businesses to grow; capacity for industries to produce; capacity for communities to prosper; and capacity for one of the fastest-growing economic corridors in our country to continue to expand without electricity infrastructure becoming a brake on its progress,” Tegbe said.
The Lekki substation previously had two 60MVA transformers at 132/33kV level, giving 120MVA or about 96MW. With the new units, capacity has doubled to 240MVA, equivalent to approximately 192MW.
The minister noted that the additional 96MW and the new feeders address both transformation capacity and evacuation, so power can move into Eko Electricity Distribution PLC (EKED)’s network without being stranded.
He said the government will continue to strengthen transmission where it constrains power, expand substations where demand is growing, and replace ageing equipment.
In his welcome address, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of TCN, Sule Abdulaziz, said the project demonstrated the company’s commitment to expanding and strengthening Nigeria’s transmission infrastructure.
He said the installation replaced the existing 30MVA transformer, increasing the substation’s capacity by 70MVA and taking its total capacity to 205MVA.
According to him, the Alausa project, once fully energised, would provide more stable and reliable electricity to at least 70,000 residents in Alausa and surrounding communities through IKEDC.
“Beyond serving the immediate community, this upgrade meaningfully increases the quantum of bulk power that TCN can wheel to distribution load centres nationwide,” Abdulaziz said.
He added that the project would reinforce grid stability and enable more bulk power to reach distribution companies’ load centres for onward delivery to consumers.
“It is a clear demonstration that TCN remains resolute in its mandate of building and sustaining a robust transmission network, capable of transporting Nigeria’s growing power needs to various distribution load centres nationwide,” he said.
Abdulaziz said the project reflected the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda and acknowledged the support of the federal government, the Ministry of Power, World Bank, Lagos State Government, contractors, engineers and other stakeholders.