The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has announced its plan to inject $8 billion to upgrade its operations, to achieve 20,000 megawatts electricity supply in the country.
The Executive Director of the TCN, Mohammed Shaike, disclosed this while receiving members of the Senate Committee on Privatisation, led by its chairman, Senator Olugbenga Obadara, who visited the company’s regional office in Osogbo, Osun State, in continuation of their oversight visit.
Shaike said TCN would work jointly with the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission to achieve the target, adding that TCN was determined to develop the technical manpower of the company, TCN’s management contractors, Manitoba International, had trained some of the technical staff abroad to acquire technical and strategic skills.
Also speaking, TCN’s General Manager, M.J. Lawal, said the company’s power lines accommodated a maximum voltage of 330KV and that its transmission coverage extends to Benin and Niger Republics.
Lawal said despite the low power generation from the companies, plans were on to upgrade the transmission lines to accommodate more voltage to distribute to the distribution companies.
Lawal listed the challenges faced by the company to include poor office accommodation, lack of safety facilities and lack of training for the technical staff.
In his response, Obadara decried the low level of investment in power generation, resulting in unstable and unreliable power supply in the country.
