Thousands of residents and businesses across Lagos have been plunged into darkness after floodwaters from days of relentless rainfall submerged critical electricity infrastructure, forcing the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) to declare force majeure on two major transmission substations serving the state.
The disruption followed severe flooding at the Oworonshoki 132/33kV and Lekki 330/132kV Transmission Substations, where rising water levels threatened key power installations and hampered electricity transmission to parts of the state.
In a statement issued on Tuesday by TCN General Manager, Public Affairs, Ndidi Mbah, the firm stated that the declaration of force majeure became necessary following continuous rainfall that inundated the substations, significantly disrupting operations.
The company disclosed that while the Lekki 132kV Transmission Substation remained operational because emergency crews were continuously pumping water out of the facility, the Oworonshoki 132/33kV Transmission Substation had been forced out of service after floodwaters submerged critical electrical equipment.
According to TCN, two power transformers at the facility—TR1 (60MVA) and TR3 (30MVA)—tripped on no-load conditions and could not be restored despite repeated efforts by engineers.
The company further revealed that all protection and control cables connected to the affected transformers had been completely submerged, making restoration impossible until the floodwaters are successfully evacuated.
“Presently, all power protection and control cables of the two power transformers are submerged inside water, and efforts to evacuate the water have proved ineffective as the rain continues to fall,” the statement said.
TCN said its engineers were working round the clock to drain the flooded substation and carry out integrity tests on the transformers once the water level subsides.
The outage is expected to affect electricity supply to numerous customers of Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) whose feeders receive bulk power from the affected transmission facility.
Although the Lekki Transmission Substation has remained in operation, officials warned that sustained rainfall could continue to pose operational challenges unless weather conditions improve.
The latest power disruption adds to the growing impact of the persistent downpour that has battered Lagos over the past two weeks, leaving several roads and communities flooded while disrupting transportation, commercial activities and other critical services.
The declaration of force majeure underscores the vulnerability of strategic national infrastructure to extreme weather events, with industry experts warning that flooding poses increasing risks to electricity transmission facilities in coastal cities such as Lagos.
TCN apologised to affected consumers for the disruption and assured them that every available resource had been deployed to restore the Oworonshoki substation as soon as conditions permit.
“We regret any inconvenience this might cause Eko DisCo’s customers taking supply from the substation,” the company stated.