TCN rallies Owerri stakeholders against transmission infrastructure vandalism

By Onu Okorie

The Transmission Company of Nigeria TCN brought together community leaders, traditional rulers, youth groups and local government officials in Owerri on Thursday in a sensitization programme aimed at protecting critical power transmission infrastructure across Imo State.

The event, organised by TCN’s Port Harcourt Region, focused on curbing the growing threats of tower vandalism and illegal soil excavation around transmission installations, while also educating residents on statutory Right-of-Way RoW regulations governing the use of land near high-voltage lines.

Speaking at the programme, the Assistant General Manager, Technical Services, Port Harcourt Region, Dr. Raymond Chika Ubani, offered a plain-language description of TCN’s role in Nigeria’s power supply chain. “We are like the trailer that goes to a company to carry manufactured goods to a warehouse where distributors then come to take the goods for distribution,” he said, underscoring TCN’s position as the critical bridge between electricity generation and distribution. Dr. Ubani called on traditional rulers and youth organisations to serve as community watchdogs, urging them to monitor and promptly report any suspicious activity around transmission installations.

The Principal Manager of the Owerri Work Centre, Engr. Nnaemeka Aninwe, raised the alarm over scrap metal dealers who purchase vandalized tower components, warning that demand from such dealers was fuelling theft and sabotage of vital infrastructure. He also cautioned residents against dumping refuse at the bases of transmission towers, explaining that decaying waste produces corrosive chemical reactions capable of degrading tower legs and ultimately compromising structural integrity.

On safety and legal compliance, Engr. Aninwe reminded residents of the statutory clearance distances that must be maintained from transmission lines — 15 metres on either side for 132kV lines, and 30 metres on either side for 330kV lines. He urged anyone planning construction near transmission corridors to verify these safety zones before breaking ground.

The local government lent its voice to the campaign, with Deputy Chairman of Owerri Municipal Council, Hon. Lucky Abaraonye, assuring TCN that the fight against vandalism was well underway at the grassroots level. He disclosed that the Imo State Government has, over the past six years, deployed trained 15-man security teams equipped with vehicles across all 21 autonomous communities in the area as part of a broader community security architecture.

The programme closed on a promising note, with over 100 participants formally pledging to cooperate with TCN and relevant security agencies in safeguarding transmission infrastructure within their communities — a commitment that energy stakeholders hope will translate into fewer outages and faster progress toward stable electricity supply in the region.