FG commissions six transmission substations in Kano, Katsina, adding 640MW

The Federal Government has commissioned six transmission substations in Kano and Katsina states, adding 640 megawatts of transmission capacity to the national grid, the Ministry of Power announced on Saturday, October 24, 2026, saying the project will improve the network's ability to move available electricity to distribution companies and consumers in the two states.

The installations comprise four substations at Walalambe, Kumbotso, Dakata and Dan-Agundi in Kano State, which together add 544 megawatts, plus two 60-megavolt ampere substations in Kankia Local Government Area of Katsina State contributing another 96 megawatts. The commissioning ceremonies were held during the week, and the additional capacity targets improved evacuation of generation and more reliable delivery to industrial and residential customers in the north-west.

Why transmission capacity is the binding constraint

Nigeria's electricity problem is frequently described as one of generation shortfalls, but operators and regulators have repeatedly identified transmission as the choke point that strands whatever is generated. The country's available generation and its distribution capability are both limited by how much power the transmission company of Nigeria can consolidate and wheel, which is why announcements of added transmission capacity carry sector-wide weight far beyond their megawatt count.

That limitation became visible again in October's data: generation reportedly plunged to about 476.70 megawatts from 3,840 megawatts earlier in the day on October 19, according to grid-monitoring figures and widely carried by energy-sector trackers, before the system was restored later that day. The recovery confirmed the systemic fragility, and every incremental substation capacity is designed to reduce the load-shedding or spill risks that events like those expose.

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Part of a broader infrastructure drive

The commissioning sits inside a series of transmission investments running under the Presidential Power Initiative, which is being executed with Siemens Energy and includes substation modernisation work in several states, alongside discrete projects funded by the Federal Government.

The programme also matters for the metering and collection economics underneath grid performance. Nairametrics reporting shows that Nigeria installed 707,765 electricity meters in the first half of 2026, up about 71 per cent from 412,792 in the same period of 2025, although more than 4.8 million active registered customers remained unmetered at the end of June, keeping estimated billing a live revenue risk for distribution companies whose remittances underpin the entire value chain.

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What it could mean for customers

For businesses in the north-west, better transmission capacity reduces the frequency of system-driven outages and the need to rely on self-generation at diesel-burning cost. Concrete gains will depend on distribution-side investments, tariff and service obligations in specific supply areas, and how quickly the DisCos are able to lift their own network limits on receiving the added power.

The grid data will tell the story more clearly than announcements. If average daily generation dispatches north-west of the national dispatch levels in coming weeks, and Kano and Katsina feeders report fewer load-shedding interruptions, the six substations will have delivered the improvement their commissioning celebrates. If those numbers do not move, the binding constraint will shift further downstream to distribution and gas availability, the areas the Ministry of Power has already flagged as its next priorities.

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The investment mathematics

Each megawatt of usable transmission capacity supports productive capacity without diesel import cost and reduces system losses. At current diesel prices, which include depots charging above N1,800 per litre after last week's surge, businesses running backup generators outside the network stand to make significant savings when grid supply becomes dependable, a shift that improves their competitiveness and lowers aggregate import bills for the economy.

The six-substation programme also fits the electricity market's regulatory direction, in which the Federal Government is pushing states and the Transmission Company of Nigeria to plan capacity around verified local constraints. For investors tracking the power sector's reform path, capacity announcements in transmission and their delivery on schedule will remain the leading indicator of whether Nigeria's electricity investment cycle is durable or discretionary.

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