National grid collapse traced to Gombe substation — NISO

The Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) has traced Tuesday’s national grid disturbance to a voltage fault at the Gombe transmission substation, saying the incident did not amount to a total system collapse as reported by some media outlets.

In a statement issued while providing updates on repair and restoration efforts, NISO said the incident marked the second grid disturbance recorded in 2026 and was classified as a partial system collapse.

According to the system operator, the disturbance originated at the Gombe transmission substation before spreading to other parts of the transmission network. The incident led to the tripping of some transmission lines and generating units, resulting in a drop in power generation to zero megawatts at about 11:00 am.

“The national grid has been fully restored, and electricity supply across the affected areas has since returned to normal,” NISO said.

“The incident only affected part of the national grid; therefore, not a total collapse. The event was accompanied by the tripping of some transmission lines and generating units, resulting in a partial system collapse,” the statement added.

NISO explained that the voltage disturbance quickly propagated across the transmission network, affecting several substations beyond Gombe. It said the disturbance spread to the Jebba and Kainji transmission substations, while the Ayede transmission substation also experienced disruptions before stabilisation measures were implemented.

The system operator said restoration efforts began shortly after the incident and were completed within hours, following immediate corrective actions by technical teams to stabilise the grid and restore normal operations.

Nigeria’s power grid has continued to experience recurrent disturbances in recent years. In 2025, the grid collapsed multiple times, with the last incident recorded on December 29. Tuesday’s disturbance represents the second grid-related incident in 2026.