Gencos: TCN Ignoring Request for Dispatch of Power to National Grid

Power generation companies in Nigeria have accused the Transmission Company of Nigeria of unethically restricting the Gencos’ capacity to deliver power to the national grid and engendering generation equipment. Executive Secretary of Association of Power Generation Companies, Dr. Joy Ogaji, made the allegation in Abuja following an enquiry on complaints about structured under-production by Gencos. Ogaji said none of the Gencos dispatched up to 50 per cent of its generated power to the grid, stressing that TCN does not have enough spinning reserves to stabilise the grid.

The Gencos condemned the restriction of their deliveries to the grid as a breach of the grid code approved by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission. They also allege dun due pressure and damage to generation plants owing to the limitation, and use of foul words like “shut up and shut down” by the System Operations department of TC N in attempts to force Gencos to reduce generation.

But TCN denied the claims, stating that it undertakes its operations in accordance with the grid code, which empowers it to apply varied control measures to manage the grid.

“The generation plants are now been used as a regulating power reserve to stabilise the national grid. Some of the machines, for instance, with 145MW capacity are mandated by NC C to operate at 70MW daily average, which constitute less than 50 per cent base load value.”

But in its response, General Manager, Public Affairs of TC N, Mrs. Ndidi Mbah, told THIS DAY that the dispatch orders were measures by the SO to keep the grid from collapsing.

Mb ah said ,“The grid code em powers the SO to deploy varied control measures as exigencies of grid operation demand, to maintain the balance between grid generation and system load. These include instructing responsive power plants to either ramp up or ramp down their generation in order to keep system frequency within limits for grid stability.

“The dispatch instruction is ordered as frequency control requirement becomes critical due to network perturbation, sudden application of uninstructed generation by Gencos. If the quantum of change in power is beyond the limit the frequency responsive machines on free governor control can contain, the gridcontroller has the statu-tory mandate to act decisively to ensure grid security.”