By Obas Esiedesa, Abuja 

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) on Wednesday revealed that it is owed N457 billion as of March, 2025, for services rendered within the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).

The Managing Director/CEO of TCN, Engr. Sule Abdulaziz, made this known at the opening of a capacity-building workshop for journalists. He explained that the debt comprises N217 billion in legacy debt and N240 billion for recent services.

Represented at the event by the Executive Director, Transmission Service Provider, Engr. Oluwagbenga Ajiboye, Abdulaziz noted that despite the financial constraints, TCN’s wheeling capacity has increased to 8,701 megawatts.

He lamented that ongoing challenges such as vandalism and funding shortfalls continue to hinder the performance of the sector, despite notable investments in transmission infrastructure.

Abdulaziz also called for significant investments in the distribution segment of the electricity value chain, stressing that the power network in the country “is only as strong as its weakest link.”

According to him, “No matter how good TCN is, if the GENCO is lacking, we will take the capacity of the GENCO. That is the total reflection of the NESI. So also, if TCN is the weak link, you cannot get more than the output of TCN.

“So also, if it is the DISCO. So you can see that it is a value chain that must not be broken. The strengths must be uniform and be able to deliver the end product”.

He explained that the national power grid goes beyond the transmission infrastructure to include generation, distribution and also consumers.

“Grid comprises generation, transmission, distribution and you, the consumer. The overall grid that was managed before now by Transmission Company of Nigeria which comprises two companies, TSP and Independent System Operator. But on the 9th of May, the unbundling of TCzn into two happened.

“We have two licenses under the Transmission Company of Nigeria, Transmission Service Provider and Independent System Operator. The Independent System Operator metamorphosed into the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO)”.

Engr Ajiboye speaking on his capacity as the Executive Director, TSP, explained that due to lack of capacity at the distribution segment or unwillingness of the distribution companies to pick loads, the TSP has had to shutdown over 40 transmission substations across the country. 

In his presentation, the General Manager (Project Coordination), Engr. Aminu Tahir said the company has completed several substations that are lying idle because of challenges of bringing lines to them.

He said the company is faced with several right of way issues which have hindered progress in connecting the new transmission substations. 

He stated that the company has received funding from the World Bank, French Development Agency (AFD), African Development Bank and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to fund most of its projects aimed at expanding transmission infrastructure.