Grid ready to wheel 8,700MW, transmission not Nigeria’s power bottleneck – TCN Chief
Omeiza Bilal
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Engr. Sule Ahmed Abdulaziz, have debunked the widespread misconception that the transmission grid is the primary bottleneck in Nigeria’s electricity value chain.
Speaking at the four-day Parliamentary/Stakeholders’ Engagement Summit on Power Sector Reforms in Abuja, Abdulaziz revealed that TCN’s current wheeling capacity stands at 8,700MW, proving that the grid can transmit significantly more power than is currently generated.
Citing data from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) February 2026 Operational Factsheet, the TCN boss noted that while the nation’s installed generation capacity sits at 13,625MW, the highest power ever generated and delivered to the national grid was 5,801.84MW, recorded on March 4, 2025.
“The implication is clear: the national grid can currently transmit significantly more power than has ever been generated and supplied to it,” Abdulaziz stated. “TCN has consistently wheeled all available generation, demonstrating that the transmission network is ready to support higher levels of electricity delivery.”
Highlighting the agency’s recent milestones, the CEO disclosed that TCN successfully expanded its bulk wheeling capacity from 7,000MW to 8,700MW through strategic federal and development partner investments. Furthermore, between January 2024 and November 2025, the company commissioned 82 transformers, adding approximately 8,500MVA of transformation capacity nationwide.
Abdulaziz also revealed that TCN has secured over $1.4 billion in development financing from international bodies like the World Bank, AfDB, JICA, and AFD to fund expansion projects and the deployment of a nationwide SCADA system for real-time grid digitalization.
Despite these strides, the TCN chief called for urgent legislative action to combat sector-wide challenges, including infrastructure vandalism, Rights-of-Way encroachment, and gas supply deficits. He urged the National Assembly to enact stricter legal protections for critical electricity infrastructure and ensure adequate funding to align investments across the generation, transmission, and distribution value chains under the Electricity Act 2023.
