By Onu Okorie

Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Independent System Operator NISO, Engr. Abdu Bello Mohammed, has called on stakeholders across the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry NESI to strengthen collaboration and operational discipline in order to secure the stability of the national grid.
Mohammed made the call while declaring open a two-day workshop themed “Strengthening Grid Stability: A Collaborative Workshop for NESI Stakeholders,” held at the Jebba Hydro Power Plant and hosted by Mainstream Energy Solutions Limited. The event brought together representatives of the Federal Ministry of Power, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission NERC, the Transmission Company of Nigeria TCN, generation and distribution companies, as well as technical experts from across the industry.
In his opening remarks, the NISO boss described grid stability as the foundation on which the security, reliability and resilience of the country’s power system rest, noting that achieving it requires more than technical fixes alone. He pointed to a mix of generation and transmission constraints, shifting demand patterns, frequency excursions and voltage-security challenges as issues currently confronting system operators.
According to Mohammed, frequency excursions in particular can stem from sudden losses of generation or load, inaccurate forecasting and scheduling, fault-related disturbances, insufficient system inertia, and how generating units respond during system events. He said NISO’s compliance monitoring had underscored the need for stricter adherence to technical standards, including Free Governor Control requirements, while stressing that grid stability ultimately remains a shared responsibility across the industry.
The CEO also linked short-term operational performance to long-term planning, noting that as Nigeria develops new power generation and transmission projects, careful assessment of transmission adequacy, system strength, reserve requirements and future demand growth would be essential to integrating these projects successfully.
He urged participants to use the two-day gathering to move from merely diagnosing problems to crafting workable solutions, and outlined a set of expected outcomes by the close of the workshop, including a shared understanding of the biggest threats to grid stability, measurable commitments to improve frequency and voltage control, practical coordination protocols between NISO, TCN, GenCos and DisCos, and a mechanism for tracking progress on agreed actions.
Mohammed reaffirmed NISO’s commitment to deepening collaboration with TCN, generation and distribution companies, NERC and policymakers, describing the goal as building a grid that is “stable, resilient, responsive” and able to support Nigeria’s economic growth.
He thanked Mainstream Energy Solutions Limited for hosting the event and called on participants to engage openly, challenge assumptions and contribute practical ideas toward strengthening the performance of the national power system.