TCN asks us to reduce electricity generation, Gencos cry out

By Emma Ujah, Abuja Bureau Chief

While most Nigerian individuals and corporate organizations are suffering from lack of adequate electricity supply to meet their consumption needs, the nation’s electricity Generation Companies (GenCos) have cried out that the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has been directing them to reduce generation, which cost them huge revenue losses and damage to their plants.

The Managing Director of Mainstream Energy Solutions, Operators of Jebba and Kainji Hydro Electricty Plants, Engr. Lamu Audu, told journalists, in Abuja, yesterday, that the GenCos could no longer bear the constant energy production reduction orders of the TCN. He revealed that between February and Monday (March 13, 2017) Jebba and Kainji alone lost 8, 574 MW unutilized electricity. He said that the total unutilized energy from all the GenCos in the period under review was monumental and most painful at a time most Nigerian homes and business hardly had enough power to meet thyeir consumption needs. His words, “Generation has improved significantly.

On the average it has been above 4, 000 MW in the last one month. “Unfortunately, we (GenCos) have been at the receiving end. In the sense that we are not allowed to deliver what we are generating. I have records here, there is no secret about it and we want Nigerians to know that the effect is so much. “ Apart from the loss of revenue after declaring what we are capable of generating, because we have what we call, “Day-Ahead-Declaration” by the regulation, we are expected to declare within the next 24 hours what we are going to generate, the capacity which we have and are sure to put into the grid –which we declare to the National Control Centre.

“It is a rule that you must declare in 24 hours that capacity, the idea of the declaration is to enable the system operator to prepare for what it has to give out. “Unfortunately, most of the time, we are not allowed to put the whole energy we have declared 24 hours earlier into the grid. “There are two things that happen: One, our machines will see that the power being generated and put on the grid is not utilized fully, so they will on their own de-load, they will come down on their own.

“Secondly, we receive direct instructions from the National Control Centre to reduce load or even shut down. We have the records here. “What that means is that we have stranded energy. That is energy that is not being utilized. Now, one we lose revenue that should have come to us as a result of that energy that is not utilized.

“In addition, it has technical effects on our machines, leading to increase in the cost of maintenance. “The third is that our shareholders are beginning to ask questions as to why should they put more money to realize more capacity, if what we are generating now is not being utilized. So you can see that it has weakened the appetite of investors to invest more in the generation of electricity.

“I just felt I should share with you events that took place between February and March (2017). Within the February and march, the total energy that could not be evacuated from Kainji and Jebba is 8, 574 MW. This is the energy that could not be evacuated either as a result of direct instruction from the National Control Centre or the frequency going up and our machines shutting down.” Details to follow soon…


Read more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2017/03/tcn-asks-us-reduce-electricity-generation-gencos-cry/?utm_source=&utm_medium=twitter

Mynd44, OAM4J, lalasticlala make una come see Nigeria wonder oh

Na wa o....

When I say the devil is in charge of every inch of this hell hole called Nigeria I really mean it

lekkie073:
Na wa o....

Speechless

SalamRushdie:
When I say the devil is in charge of every inch of this hell hole called Nigeria I really mean it

It is not a matter of the devil being in charge but the inability of policy makers to plan ahead. We've concentrated so much energy on power generation since 1999 while little or no investment was made to improve the distribution network. The outcome is what is playing out.

I once heard Fashola talking about this problem and I think one of the projects that will be financed with the proposed $29billion loan is the expansion of the transmission network. Hopefully, this problem will be addressed by the current administration.

This is very true. Problem with this privatization ish. Companies want to make as much as possible, so they ask for reduced generation. They still collect same amount, especially with estimated bills, but give out less electricity as much as possible. Can confirm

Everything still boils down to lack of proper metering technology.
Once Discos can't accept all energy, the TCN will naturally tell the GenCos to reduce generation.

Lol. B'cos Discos only request for little energy that they can account for and make excess gain

Issue with privatisation. The Discos re just out to make money not minding whether they distribute power or not

The only way to stop this mess is to abolish the national grid system and allow GENCOs to collect electricity bills directly from consumers. That is, the perequisite for a company to be licensed as a DISCO is for it to have a fuctioning power plant that it would use to supply power to its target market. This way, there would be urge to increase investments in both the generation and transmission capabilities by the electricity producers as that would mean increased revenues for them. I wonder if our leaders don't think.

Lalasticlala - day don break for GENCOS

We need to hear them out fast....DISCOs are our problem.

No more bribes to GENCOS from genset companies, DISCOs and Ministry of Power.

We need Fashola to explain this immediately.

Amazing disclosures.....

i talk am bfore and i go talk am again, anybody wey think say we go fit get constant power supply in dis our generation is day dreaming.

This is just some real bull... Discos are just the major plank of our problem. They refuse to invest and frustrate those who generate electricity.

vedaxcool:
This is just some real bull... Discos are just the major plank of our problem. They refuse to invest and frustrate those who generate electricity.

I concur with this. In recent times, the GENCOs seem to have been upping their game, likewise TCN. But it seems the DISCOs are still stuck in the 'NEPA' days, no improvement effort seems to be coming from the side of the DISCOs.