Power Ministry Says No To TCN Privatization Despite System Collapses, Stakeholders Demand

Despite increasing demands by stakeholders for a decentralised transmission of power due to observed inefficiencies leading to system collapses, the Ministry of Power has denied plans to privatize the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and urged the public to dismiss statements suggesting a non-existing plan to privatize it.

OPTIMUM TIMES recalls that there have been recurring intense criticisms against the government monopoly of power transmission attributing it to the frequent collapse of the national grid and the inability to transmit generated power to the end users.

Only this year, the transmission system has collapsed up to seven times and this has led to continuous calls for privatization of the TCN by the people and even among government officials.

But the Power ministry while disputing the demand for the privatisation in a statement Wednesday, cited that some media reports “even falsely claimed that the said privitization is going to take place in coming months.”

According to the statement by Malam Isa Sanusi, SA (Media) to the Minister of power, “These reports are untrue and are only mere misinformation aimed at spreading panic in the power sector, which is making progress towards ensuring that Nigerians enjoy uninterrupted power supply.

“The Federal Government of Nigeria has no intent to sell or privatize the Transmission Company of Nigeria, and no one in the FGN has made a statement of an intent to sell TCN.

“The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) is a centrepiece in the Federal Government of Nigeria’s efforts to rejuvenate the power sector. Therefore, the Ministry of Power working with key stakeholders is continuing to evaluate, assesses and upgrade TCN to make it more efficient and transparent.

“As part of the repositioning of TCN, job opportunities are being created, as with the recently concluded ramp up of employment, contrary to claims that there is a plan for a mass disengagement of staff at TCN. The organization has also been carrying out sustained capacity building by training and retraining of staff across all cadre for efficiency and service delivery.

“Transmission is a vital segment of the electricity value chain that constantly needs significant investment. As is the best practice across the world, the government of Nigeria maintains the transmission segment of the power value chain even when other segments have been privatized. Currently, the federal government is investing and supporting efforts to make TCN a world-class transmission service provider.

“The federal government under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari focuses on upgrading, stabilizing and modernizing Nigeria’s power industry through various interventions, including the Nigeria-Siemens partnership under the Presidential Power Initiative (PPI).”