Power outage hits Abuja, Jos as vandals destroy 6 TCN towers

Power supply has been disrupted across parts of North-Central Nigeria after vandals destroyed six transmission towers on the critical Apir-Lafia 330kV transmission corridor in Nasarawa State, further exposing the vulnerability of the country’s electricity infrastructure.

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) disclosed on Wednesday that the vandalism occurred on May 30 at about 1:15 a.m. during a heavy downpour, knocking out both Apir-Lafia 330kV Transmission Lines I and II.

In a statement signed by Ndidi Mbah, TCN’s general manager of public affairs, the company said efforts to restore supply initially failed after one of the lines tripped.

According to Mbah, a subsequent patrol of the transmission route revealed extensive damage to towers T125 through T130, confirming deliberate acts of vandalism along the corridor.

The incident has left both transmission lines out of service, disrupting bulk power delivery to parts of the network pending reconstruction of the damaged towers.

“TCN engineers have been mobilised to site to assess the extent of damage and ascertain materials required to commence to restore normal transmission along the corridor,” Mbah said.

To reduce the impact on electricity consumers, TCN said it has activated an alternative supply arrangement through the Lafia–Jos transmission line.

“Meanwhile, the Lafia 330kV Transmission Station is being supplied through the Lafia–Jos transmission line as a temporary measure to minimise the impact of the outage on affected electricity customers within the franchise areas of Abuja Electricity Distribution Company and Jos Electricity Distribution Company,” she added.

The latest attack added to growing concerns over the persistent vandalisation of critical power infrastructure across the country.

Nigeria’s transmission network has increasingly come under attack from vandals and bandits, resulting in widespread outages, operational disruptions and significant repair costs.

The Federal Government recently disclosed that it spent about ₦8.8 billion repairing vandalised transmission towers nationwide.

Transmission sector data show that between January and November 2024, a total of 128 transmission towers were destroyed across the country.

The trend has continued into 2025. In the first half of the year alone, 42 separate vandalism incidents affected 178 transmission towers, highlighting the mounting security challenge facing Nigeria’s power sector.