A sweeping power outage has plunged four states in Nigeria’s North-East Taraba, Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe into darkness, following the commencement of major transmission infrastructure upgrades.
The blackout, which began at 10:00 AM on Tuesday, June 10, is expected to continue until 5:00 PM on Saturday, June 14. As of the time of reporting, the outage has severely disrupted daily life and economic activity across the affected areas.
In a public notice, the Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC) announced that the power interruption is due to critical maintenance and upgrade work being carried out by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).
The project involves the installation of new transmission towers at the Bauchi 330kV station and the reconfiguration of the Jos-Gombe 330kV and Jos-Bauchi-Gombe 132kV transmission lines.
As a result, key cities including Damaturu, Molai, Yola, and Jalingo have been disconnected from the national grid, with their injection substations offline for the duration of the work.
To reduce the impact on affected communities, TCN and YEDC have made alternative power supply arrangements in selected areas. Biu will receive electricity from the Dadi Kowa Hydro plant, Maiduguri’s Baga Road substation will be supplied through the MEPP facility, and communities along the Nguru–Machina axis will be served via the 33kV Nguru feeder.
YEDC clarified that the upgrade is a TCN-led initiative aimed at strengthening the regional transmission network and improving long-term power reliability.
“Power supply will be fully restored once TCN confirms the successful completion of the work,” YEDC said, while expressing appreciation to customers for their patience and understanding during the disruption.