The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu has formed a forensic investigating group to solve the frequent grid failures.
According to a statement issued by the minister’s media aide, Bolaji Tunji, Adelabu summoned the leadership of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission and the Transmission Company of Nigeria to an emergency meeting at the weekend, concerned about the disruption on the national grid that had thrown some parts of the country into darkness “twice” in the previous week.
The minister was outraged by the occurrence, which he said was “capable of rubbishing the giant strides made in the last year, which has led to an increased generation and distribution of 5, 527 megawatts, a record generation in three years.”
“Adelabu also constituted a forensic investigation committee with a mandate to advise the government on necessary solutions to make the national grid robust and reliable in addition to the ongoing efforts of the government like the Presidential Power Initiatives and the Nigeria Electricity Transmission Project.
“The committee is also to establish the root cause of both incidents especially a review of potential sabotage on the system,” the statement read partly.
It was mentioned that the Committee will holistically review the national grid stability and identify investments and technical capacities required to make the grid smart and resilient.
“In addition, a technical team has been deployed to access the critical nodes on the national grid to identify potential vulnerabilities and proffer recommendations to address these vulnerabilities to prevent future disruptions to the grid,” it was noted.
The six-member committee includes Engr Nafisat Ali, Executive Director of Independent System Operator; Dr Chidi Ike, Commissioner of NERC; Engr Ishola, General Manager of National Control Centre; Engr. Emmanuel Nosike, Director of Transmission, Federal Ministry of Power; Engr. Ali Sharifai, General Manager of Transmission Service Provider; and Mr Adedayo Olowoniyi, Chief Technical Adviser to the Minister of Power.
The team is scheduled to provide a report to the minister by November 1, 2024.
