TCN, Phase-3 feud: National interest first

Nowhere has the Nigerian national interest been brazenly undermined in recent times than in the power sector. It is on record that the intractable problems in the power sector that have led to the current state of crisis in the power sector can be traced to the unpatriotic shenanigans of the Olusegun Obasanjo regime. The […]

Nowhere has the Nigerian national interest been brazenly undermined in recent times than in the power sector. It is on record that the intractable problems in the power sector that have led to the current state of crisis in the power sector can be traced to the unpatriotic shenanigans of the Olusegun Obasanjo regime. The way it handled the so-called power sector reforms, just like it did in other sectors has left very much to be desired. The sad realities that are steering the nation right in the face as reported recently in the media about a feud between the Transmission Company of Nigeria TCN and a fibre optic infrastructure company known as Phase-3 over a concessionary agreement that has ended up short changing the country and compounding our woes in the power sector, is one pointer too many that Nigeria is indeed in a quagmire of a self-inflicted despair. The fact that the feud has not only impacted negatively, but is continuing to adversely affect the stability of the national grid for a period of 16 years, is to say the least heartrending and grossly disappointing.

The gist, as reported by a number of news outlets, is that the TCN (successor of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria PHCN) had signed an agreement on March 20, 2006 with Phase-3 to design, build, finance and operate its fibre optical cable telecommunication infrastructure. Sixteen years on, Phase-3 has ceaselessly shown gross incapacity, dereliction of duty and brazen act of irresponsibility in fulfilling its part of the bargain, thereby frustrating the effort of TCN in stabilizing the national grid in order to deliver electricity to Nigerians. As a result of the clear inability of Phase-3 to deliver, the TCN, in a letter dated August 30, 2017 cancelled the agreement citing breach of contract terms as well as conflict of interest. In cancelling the concession contract it had with Phase-3 Telecoms and Alheri Engineering Company, TCN said that the two Firms have underperformed and have paid only $3.5 million of the $40m concession fee since they took over the assets in 2006.

On his part also, former Minister of Power Raji Fashola wrote a letter to the President in October 2017 in which he faulted the process of the concession, pointing out the breach of agreement as well as conflict of interest in the entire transactions. While making reference to the $40m concession fee which Phase-3 was unable to pay for the use of TCN’s asset to service their customers, Fashola noted, in the letter, that the concession fee was not just for the right of way upon which the transmission lines are constructed, but also for the use of the fibre optic network which was built by TCN along with the transmission lines. ‘’Since 2006, Phase-3 and Alheri have paid only $2million and $3.5million concession fees respectively’’ Fashola lamented in his letter to the President.

It is vital to note that the various system collapses of the power grid were traced to the use of the fibre optics on the transmission towers for telecommunication services rather than for real time grid monitoring through a robust Systems Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA). The last system collapse of the grid happened on Wednesday, May 8, 2019 leading to reduced load allocations to the distribution companies. The following day, the grid collapsed again compounding the problem. Nigerians have suffered untold hardships from self serving concessions in different sectors in the past. Until today, many of such concessions, mired in intractable technicalities of litigations have wrought unimaginable losses for the government. The Phase-3 imbroglio which was one of the many of its type was orchestrated during the same years of the locust of Olusegun Obasanjo. The agreements were usually arranged in such a way that the benefiting companies, usually owned by briefcase contractors with no technical expertise or partnership benefit from loopholes specifically embedded to fleece the country.

The rift between TCN and Phase-3, to my mind, falls into that category whereby the country is drawn into concessionary agreements with the mindset to trap it into unwholesome situations that seek to confer benefits to private developers or technical partners who, from the onset lack capacities but whose only qualification is that they are close to people in power. At the end of the day, the country becomes worse for it and the people suffer consequences of poor service delivery. Of course, Nigeria has paid dearly for such infractions in a number of similar situations. In fact, we are still paying dearly while the benefitting parties continued to smile to the banks, based entirely on the one-sided nature of concession agreements.

Now that the TCN has found the teeth to cancel the contract based on the need to save the nation from becoming tied down to a single company’s profiteering mentality, it behoves on us as Nigerians to rise up in support of the nation, because as it is today, we have suffered enough in the hands of capitalist inclination of profiteers and their collaborators. We must exert pressure on the President to encourage other public enterprises or utilities to emulate the courage and patriotism of the management of TCN in dispensing with counterproductive agreements that have succeeded not only in short changing the country but taking it several years backward. The power sector has had enough exploitation by all manner of diabolical set ups, such that we just can no longer keep mute in the face of imminent draw back that is sure going to cost us dearly. I agree with former Minister Fashola when he said, in his letter to the President that ‘’going ahead with the concession will affect the stability, optimization and continued expansion of the national grid.’’ It is time we think Nigeria.

Bayo Fredrick, a civil engineer, wrote from Apapa, Lagos.