Ekiti Protests Planned Power Outage For Two Months By TCN

By Ayodele Oni

Ekiti State Government has protested to the Transmission Company of Nigeria, (TCN) over planned power outage in the State for two months.

This was contained in a letter, dated June 30, 2024 to the

Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Abuja and copied Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC), Benin-City and

the Chairman, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Company (NERC), Abuja

It was titled Re- Notification of Power Disruption/Outage in Ado-Ekiti and Akure for Two Months (July, August 2024) For Nine Hours Each Day (8.00AM TO 5.00PM) and signed by Prof Mobolaji Aluko, Commissioner for Infrastructure and Projects Planning.

It stated that: “No direct notification/communication was made to the Ekiti State Ministry of Infrastructure and Public Utilities (MIPU) on this matter, nor was approval sought and obtained from the Ekiti State Electricity Regulatory Bureau (EKSERB), saddled by law with the full authority to regulate the electricity industry in Ekiti State.

“The planned disruption of electricity for three-eighths of each day for sixty-two days, amounting to five hundred and fifty-eight hours (558) total and twenty-three days of outage in these two months amounts to an unacceptable economic, financial and social price to be paid by the citizens of Ekiti State, and we totally reject such a plan.

“Consequently, we ask for an immediate suspension of the plan, while we call for an emergency meeting with the regional heads of TCN, BEDC and NERC at 12:00 noon Tuesday, July 2, 2024, at the Office of the Honourable

Commissioner, MIPU, The Secretariat, Ado-Ekiti, in order to devise an alternative and far less adverse plan to achieve the same stated aims.”

TCN had in a notice explained that the outage is ” to carry out critical maintenance work on the 132KV Akure Osogbo transmission line…(and) the installation of Optical Ground Wire (OPGW) and

other activities.”

Ekiti state government added that “We request prompt attention to this matter while we are eager to work collaboratively toward a sustainable solution that will benefit both citizens of the State and the Ekiti State Electricity Supply Industry.”