Nigeria's Apapa grid upgrade triples capacity with Japan's N20bn backing
The Apapa Road substation in Lagos now moves 180MVA, up from 60MVA, after JICA-backed transformers were energised in April and commissioned in August.
The Government of Japan, through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), has committed N20 billion to the expansion and rehabilitation of Nigeria's national electricity grid, with funding targeted at the Apapa Transmission Substation in Lagos State, Nairametrics reported on 19 August 2026.
The Apapa Road 132/33kV Transmission Substation has already seen its capacity triple from 60MVA to 180MVA following the energisation of two new 60MVA power transformers and associated Gas Insulated Switchgear on 17 April 2026, according to the Transmission Company of Nigeria.
TCN confirmed the upgrade in a corporate statement: "The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Lagos Region, has successfully energised two 60MVA 132/33kV power transformers along with their associated Gas Insulated Switchgear (GIS) at the newly rehabilitated Apapa Road 132/33kV Transmission Substation in Lagos State." The company added: "With the addition of the two transformers, the capacity of the substation has increased from 60MVA to 180MVA."
The project sits within JICA's broader Lagos Transmission Facilities Emergency Rehabilitation and Reinforcement Project, a grant aid programme with an agreement period running from November 2018 through December 2025, as detailed in JICA's preparatory survey documentation. The Apapa work was executed by Toyota Tsusho Corporation and Takaoka Engineering Company Limited, with Yachiyo Engineering Company Limited providing supervision, under Japan's Official Development Assistance framework.
Engr. Sule Ahmed Abdulaziz, Managing Director/CEO of TCN, said at the commissioning that "the project had increased the capacity of the Apapa Road transmission substation from 60MVA to 180MVA through the installation and energisation of two new 60MVA power transformers, alongside modern gas-insulated switchgear," as reported by The Nation.
The upgrade means more bulk power can flow to Eko Electricity Distribution Company for customers in Apapa Causeway, parts of Ijora, Amukoko, Ajegunle, Apapa Wharf, Tin Can, and surrounding areas. TCN described the project as "sponsored and executed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in strategic partnership with the Transmission Company of Nigeria," calling it "a clear testament of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Administration's commitment to expanding the nation's transmission network to serve one of Lagos' busiest industrial corridors."
Combined with a separate World Bank-funded upgrade at the Ijora substation, the Lagos projects add roughly 208 MW of bulk transmission capacity to the national grid, Legit.ng reported, with a formal commissioning captured in a video segment.
The N20 billion grant commitment is separate from a planned $238 million JICA loan under negotiation for broader national grid expansion, for which Nigeria's Federal Executive Council approved N19,083,192,805.30 in counterpart funding, Arise News reported. That facility is expected to fund 102.95 km of new 330kV double circuit lines, 104.59 km of new 132kV double circuit lines, four 330/132/33kV substations, and two 132/33kV substations, according to Power Line magazine.
The JICA-backed Apapa project is one of three grant-funded substations — alongside Apo in the FCT and Keffi in Nasarawa State — feeding Nigeria's stated target of reaching 6,000 MW wheeling capacity by December 2026. Further commissioning details from TCN's official channels and project documentation are expected as the broader Lagos transmission rehabilitation programme wraps up.
