FG spends N29bn to repair damaged power towers – Report

The Federal Government, through the Transmission Company of Nigeria, has spent a total sum of N29.3bn as costs to repair 266 electricity towers damaged by vandals nationwide, the latest data obtained from TCN showed.

The incidents that occurred between January 2022 and October 2024, a period of 34 months, have affected power availability and accessibility across the federation.

This comes as the latest Africa Trade Barometer report has revealed that Nigeria loses $26bn yearly to power failures.

According to data obtained by our correspondent from TCN’s monthly bulletin and news reports on Monday, 266 power transmission towers were destroyed by vandals in various parts of the country.

The vandalism of transmission towers occurred in the Abuja, Lagos, Kano, Enugu, Bauchi, Port Harcourt, and Benin regions. TCN contracts out the repairs of some of the vandalised towers.

It had also deployed in-house engineers of the transmission company to work on other vandalised towers.

According to energy experts, it costs about N110m to fix each vandalised tower, and a cumulative N29.26bn to repair 266 towers.

A breakdown of the report showed that 90 towers were destroyed in 2022. This figure increased by 23.3 per cent to 111 towers in 2023. In the current year, electricity tower vandalism occurred 65 times between January and October 27, 2024.

Further analysis showed that in 2022, 21 towers on the 132kv Kano-Kankia transmission line two were destroyed, and 16 towers were damaged under the Kano-Kankia line one.

Similarly, 19 towers on the Makurdi-Jos double circuit transmission line were vandalised, among others.

In 2023, 15 towers on the 132kv Owerri-Ahaoda transmission line in Port-Harcourt were damaged and 13 towers on the 132kv Ahaoda-Yenegoa transmission line were vandalised.

Also, 122 earthen conductors, 244 galvanised bolts, nuts, and copper cable lugs from the remaining towers were stolen.

Among the notable incidents in the first ten months of 2024 was the collapse of Tower 388 on the 132kV Jos-Bauchi line in the Bauchi/Yelwa single circuit transmission line, as were Towers 377 and 378 on the 330kV Gombe-Damaturu line along Bauchi/Gombe and Damaturu. Additional collapses were reported on the 330kV Damaturu-Maiduguri line, including Towers 125, 126, 193, 194, and 195.

In the Bauchi-Gombe area, 450, 452, 453, and 455 on the 132kV line were vandalised, and Tower 70 on the 330kV Gwagwalada-Katampe line in Abuja saw four of its footings destroyed.

Vandals also carted tower members of the 330kv Jos-Gombe from towers 288 to 291.

Despite improvements in power generation, vandalism continues to undermine these advancements, challenging the government’s ability to ensure a stable power supply across the country.

This extensive damage has significantly impacted the electricity supply in the affected areas, as noted by officials from the TCN, which manages the nation’s power grid.

Confirming this, a new report by Standard Bank stated that Nigeria loses an estimated $26bn yearly to power failures.

The cost which excludes spending on off-grid generators affects operational costs.

It added that businesses spend about $22bn annually on off-grid fuel to offset the impact of power shortages.

“Economic losses arising from Nigeria’s electricity shortages are estimated to be $26bn annually, without accounting for spending on fuel for off-grid generators, which is estimated to be a further $22bn.