By Ayomide Otitoju
The Federal Government has commenced construction of a new National Control Centre for the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) in Osogbo, Osun State, to improve the monitoring and management of Nigeria’s electricity grid.
The new facility will replace the existing control centre, which has been in operation for 64 years.
Vice President Kashim Shettima, represented by the Senior Special Assistant (Legal), Office of the Vice President, performed the groundbreaking ceremony with the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, in attendance.
Shettima said reliable electricity remained central to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, describing stable power supply as important to businesses, manufacturers, hospitals and schools.
He said the National Control Centre was critical to protecting the reliability of the national grid and that modern infrastructure was required to manage Nigeria’s interconnected electricity system.
Tegbe said the new centre would strengthen NISO’s ability to monitor developments across the national grid and respond more quickly to faults and other system disturbances.
According to the Minister, the facility will feature integrated Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA), large-format displays and analytics to help operators identify developing faults, plan preventive maintenance and improve the use of available generation and transmission capacity.
He said the centre would also support the integration of renewable energy and improve Nigeria’s coordination within the West African Power Pool, while strengthening physical and cyber security.
Tegbe said the project could contribute to fewer avoidable outages and more reliable electricity for consumers and businesses. He, however, noted that improved grid control must be supported by adequate gas supply, well-maintained transmission infrastructure and functional distribution networks.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of NISO, Abdu Bello Mohammed, said the facility would improve the operator’s visibility of the national grid and support faster, data-driven responses to system disturbances.
Mohammed said upgraded telemetry, SCADA and automatic metering would provide better information for operational decisions and improve market settlement.
He added that the new centre would strengthen NISO’s capacity to meet the technical requirements of the West African power system.
The ceremony was attended by members of the NISO Board and management, National Assembly committees on power, representatives of electricity distribution companies, the Osun State Government, industry stakeholders and community leaders.
