The Federal Government declared on Saturday that vandalism of transmission towers at Odukpani, Ikot Ekpene 330 Kilovolt double circuit line was responsible for Friday’s collapse of the national grid.
Mr Isa Sanusi, Special Adviser on Media to the Minister of Power, Mr Abubakar Aliyu, made the declaration in a statement issued in Abuja.
“We wish to inform the general public that the immediate cause of the national blackout (system collapse) was an act of vandalism on a transmission tower on the Odukpani Ikot Ekpene 330kV double circuit transmission line.
“This resulted in sudden loss of about 400 Megawatts of generation. This consequently led to a cascade of plant shutdowns across the country,’’ he stated.
According to him, power on the grid is being restored sequentially by the system operator at the Calabar power plant, the Niger Power Holding Company Ltd.