Following the unified directive from the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) to strike on Monday over the new minimum wage, electricity workers have halted operations on the National Grid, causing a nationwide blackout. The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) revealed this in a statement signed by its spokesperson, Ndidi Mbah, on Monday morning. TCN reported that workers were forcibly removed from their duty posts, with some being beaten and injured at various power facilities. Additionally, the company’s attempts to restore the grid were being obstructed by the union members.
“The Transmission Company of Nigeria hereby informs the general public that the Labour Union has shut down the national grid, resulting in black out nationwide. The national grid shut down occured at about 2.19am this morning, 3rd June 2024.
“At about 1:15 am this morning, the Benin Transmission Operator under the Independent System Operations unit of TCN reported that all operators were driven away from the control room and that staff that resisted were beaten while some were wounded in the course of forcing them out of the control room and without any form of control or supervision, the Benin Area Control Center was brought to zero.
“Other transmission substations that were shut down by the Labour Union include the Ganmo, Benin, Ayede, Olorunsogo, Akangba and Osogbo Transmission Substations. Some transmission lines were equally opened due to the ongoing activities of the labor union.
“On the power generating side, power generating units from different generating stations were forced to shut down some units of their generating plants, the Jebba Generating Station was forced to shut down one of its generating units while three others in the same substation subsequently shut down on very high frequency. The sudden forced load cuts led to high frequency and system instability, which eventually shut down the national grid at 2:19am.
“At about 3.23am, however, TCN commenced grid recovery, using the Shiroro Substation to attempt to feed the transmission lines supplying bulk electricity to the Katampe Transmission Substation. The situation is such that the labor Union is still obstructing grid recovery nationwide.
“We will continue to make efforts to recover and stabilize the grid to enable the restoration of normal bulk transmission of electricity to distribution load centers nationwide,” TCN stated.
In a notice released on Saturday about the indefinite nationwide strike, NLC General Secretary Emmanuel Ugboaja called on all affiliated organizations to mobilize their members to fully comply with the industrial action directive. Ugboaja stressed the importance of achieving a complete shutdown of all workplaces, highlighting that the strike’s success depended on the collective determination and resolve of their members.
