TCN Boosts Kumbotso Substation by 25%, Adds Capacity for 220,000 Households in Kano
The Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, has completed the reinforcement of the Kumbotso Transmission Substation in Kano State, increasing its capacity by 25 per cent to meet growing electricity demand.
The Managing Director/CEO of TCN, Engr. Sule Abdulaziz, disclosed this on Thursday, October 22, at the commissioning of the substation in Kano.
Abdulaziz disclosed that the project involved the replacement of an existing 150MVA, 330/132kV transformer with a higher-capacity 300MVA, 330/132/33kV transformer, and the replacement of a 40MVA, 132/33kV transformer with a 100MVA unit.
He said the upgrade has raised the substation’s transformation capacity at the 330/132kV level from 600MVA to 750MVA, representing a 25 per cent increase, while capacity at the 132/33kV level rose from 220MVA to 280MVA, an increase of 27.3 per cent.
According to him, the expanded capacity at the 132/33kV level is equivalent to an increase from 176MW to 224MW at a power factor of 0.8, with the potential to improve access to electricity for at least 220,000 households, subject to available generation and distribution capacity.
The TCN boss noted that Kano remains a major centre of commerce, manufacturing and enterprise in northern Nigeria, and the transmission infrastructure must keep pace with increasing demand.
He added that the project was implemented by the Federal Ministry of Power and TCN, with funding from the World Bank, while Messrs. China Energy Engineering Group Jiangsu Power Design Institute, JSPDI, served as contractor.
The project, awarded in June 2021 and completed in June 2026, involved the supply, installation, testing and commissioning of the transformers and associated electrical connections, support structures and control systems.
Abdulaziz acknowledged the World Bank, the Federal Ministry of Power, contractors and TCN engineers for their contributions to the project, noting that it supports the Nigerian Electricity Grid Maintenance, Expansion and Rehabilitation Programme, NEGMERP, and President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
He urged communities, businesses and stakeholders to protect transmission facilities from vandalism and encroachment on rights of way, stressing that the assets are public infrastructure.
