The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), on Friday, announced that two towers along its 330kV Shiroro–Kaduna transmission lines one and two have been vandalized, damaging parts of both transmission lines.
Though the company did not mention that the bandits were responsible for the damage done to its tower, it is suspected that they might be responsible for it going by their recent nefarious activities around the Shiroro and its neighbouring communities.
NewsNGR recalls that bandits killed 13 farmers in the Shiroro community.
According to TCN, the 330kV transmission line one tripped first, followed shortly by the second, as efforts were still ongoing to reclose the first line, prompting the urgent mobilization of local vigilantes to patrol the lines.
It added that the development led to the discovery of two damaged towers, towers T133 and T 136, with their cables badly damaged at several points.
The company’s General Manager, Public Affairs, Ndidi Mbah, in a statement she issued in Abuja on Friday, said arrangements are in top gear to deploy the newly procured “emergency restoration system” to the site, pending the reconstruction of the damaged towers.
TCN said it had conducted an aerial survey in collaboration with security operatives, given the area’s vulnerability to banditry, which poses a significant threat to TCN installations and personnel.
To this end, the company stated that in the interim, its engineers had implemented a temporary measure to supply bulk power to the Kaduna and Kano regions via the 330kV Kaduna – Jos transmission line.
“The vandalized Shiroro – Kaduna 330kV lines 1&2 are vital lines through which bulk power is transmitted to parts of the North West region, with each line capable of carrying 600MW.
“The vandalism of the towers and transmission lines presents a significant challenge to bulk power transmission in that axis.
“We are, however, committed to re-erecting the towers and restringing the transmission lines to restore bulk power transmission through both 330kV power transmission lines,” the company stated.