The minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has recommended capital punishment for any offender arrested in connection with the practice.
The minister expressed worry over the spate of vandalisation of power equipment across the country, coupled with the practice of power theft.
This is as the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), said electricity has been restored to Kano one day after fire broke out at the Dan Agundi Substation that disrupted power supply to some parts of the city.
TCN, in a statement by its general manager of Public Affairs, Ndidi Mbah, said the affected transformers were isolated, and cables were reconfigured to reinstate power to three feeders for Kano Distribution Company customers.
Speaking in Abuja during a meeting with old and new Heads of Power Agencies in Nigeria, the minister blamed the ugly trend, coupled with low gas supply for the epileptic power supply in Nigeria.
Adelabu disclosed that some Nigerians have failed to understand that power equipment is costly to procure and install noting that the act of vandalism would no longer be handled with kid gloves.
He stressed that the Ministry has secured an understanding with the Office of the National Security Adviser and other Security Agencies to ensure that all its installations are safe and secure, just as he enjoined Nigerians to do the same.
The minister enjoined Heads Power Agencies to be on their toes and continue to educate Nigerians on the problems being encountered noting that, within the short the issue of epileptic power supply will soon be over.
The chairman, TCN and other Heads of the power Agencies, who spoke at the meeting assured the minister of their support for improved power generation and distribution in Nigeria.
Vandalism of electricity infrastructure in Nigeria has been a significant issue, with multiple incidents reported. Vandals destroyed over 100 electricity transmission towers across various regions like Abuja, Lagos, Kano, Enugu, and Benin, targeting both 132kV and 330kV double circuit power transmission lines
The Port Harcourt sub-region experienced vandalism on several transmission lines
Recent reports from IBEDC highlight a surge in vandalism cases in 2024 alone
The impact of such actions is evident in instances like the destruction of Tower 70 along the Gwagwalade-Katampe Transmission line in Abuja, exacerbating blackout situations.
These incidents underscore the urgent need for enhanced security and preventive measures to safeguard Nigeria’s electricity infrastructure.
Meanwhile, Mbah emphasised that work is ongoing to ensure a complete restoration to the remaining feeders today, March 11, 2024.
“The Three feeders – Kurna, BUK, and one of the 15MVA power transformers – began receiving power supply from a 60MVA transformer, enabling Kano DisCo to distribute power to some customers.
“The remaining four feeders, namely Zaria, Club, CBN, and the second 15MVA power transformer, will resume bulk power supply on Monday 11 March, following repair works on a punctured cable initiated in the early hours of the morning,” the TCN said.
The transmission company said it has a redundancy of 100MVA transformer fully installed at the substation, which will undergo testing and energization to mitigate any potential bulk supply shortfall to Kano DisCo.
The fire was triggered by a sudden spark from an electrical oil pumping machine during maintenance on a 60MVA power transformer.
It took the combined efforts of the Kano State Fire Service with TCN’s safety staff deploying industrial extinguishers, with the support of safety engineers, and security personnel to extinguish the fire on Sunday.
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