The Nigeria Transmission Company (TCN) has declared that the lack of payment of a debt of N457 billion owed by interested parties in the industry has been a key factor that affects the company's capacity to carry out its duties and function optimally.
The executive director of the Transmission System (TSP) supplier in TCN, the engineer Oluwagbenga Ajiboye, revealed this in a three -day media workshop organized for energy correspondents in Keffi, state of Nasarawa, theme: “Understand the critical role of TCN in the Nigeria electricity supply industry (NESI).”
According to Ajiboye, the heavy burden of debt has not only significantly affected energy transmission, but also the problems related to the passage have also hindered the smooth erection of the transmission towers to deliver electricity to the Nigerians.
He added that TCN is owed N217 billion as inherited debt and the remaining N240 billion for the services provided to the distribution companies (disc), while reaffirming TCN's commitment to transparency, responsibility and sustained commitment to the media as critical partners to shape the public understanding of the electricity sector.
Ajiboye also declared that vandalism has further impacted TCN projections for the expansion of the network, noting that the company spent almost N9 billion to restore some of its facilities.
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He said: “We are owed around N457 billion as of March of this year, of which N217 is an inherited debt. 2024 was a year of vandalization and we spent on the excess of N9 billion for repair. These taxes have continued to affect the expansion of the wall. The right has always hindered our work to access some transmission lines of communities that will pass through.”
He highlighted the continuous efforts of TCN to address the widespread erroneous concepts about their role within the Nigerian electricity supply industry, saying that a key challenge lies in the misunderstanding between the installed capacity and the available capacity, and pointing out that many transmission assets have been used in excess over time. To address these problems, he said that TCN is making strategic infrastructure investments and is adopting public-private partnerships to close the identified gaps and meet national demand.
The Executive Director also declared that the National Security Advisor Office (NSA) is handling infrastructure security concerns, with new investment plans ongoing to strengthen the reliability of the transmission network.
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