Young engineers from the Nigerian Society of Engineers’ Ikeja Branch toured Egbin Power Plc as part of a seven-week professional development programme, gaining direct exposure to one of West Africa’s most complex industrial facilities.
Trainee engineers from the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) Ikeja Branch have visited Egbin Power Plc in Lagos as part of a structured seven-week training programme, getting a firsthand look at the technical operations behind Nigeria’s largest power station.
Egbin Power Plc has a total installed generation capacity of 1,320 megawatts (MW), a figure that gives it the distinction of being the largest power station in sub-Saharan Africa. The plant operates primarily as a thermal power station, generating electricity through steam turbines, with a gas turbine serving as an auxiliary source.
The visit was designed to complement classroom instruction with direct observation of industrial processes, safety procedures, and maintenance practices that engineers would not typically encounter in a university setting.
Safety as Operating Culture
From the outset of the tour, plant officials made clear that safety governs every aspect of the facility’s operations. The phrase “safety is number one” was repeated throughout the visit — not as a slogan but as a working principle that shapes decisions at every level.
Practical demonstrations reinforced the point. Engineers observed the use of fume extractors during welding activities, equipment designed to filter harmful emissions before they are released. Staff also drew attention to the extreme temperatures involved in steam operations — reaching 541°C — along with routine reminders to visiting engineers about physical hazards underfoot. “Watch your leg. Mind the ground,” was among the guidance issued during the walkthrough.
The plant’s preferred welding method, referred to as “Cox in gas c,” was highlighted for its high quality and low failure rate. Officials said this process is favoured over alternatives such as stick welding because of the greater reliability it offers when working on critical infrastructure such as boilers and piping.
How Water Becomes Electricity
A significant portion of the tour focused on water treatment, which plant officials described as foundational to the entire generation process.
Water supply begins at six deep wells, each capable of pumping 75 cubic metres per hour, delivering a combined flow of 300 cubic metres per hour, with two wells kept in reserve. The well water arrives with a naturally acidic pH of around 4.0. It is first treated in what staff refer to as a “bleaching tank,” where calcium hypochlorite and calcium hydroxide are added to eliminate bacteria, prevent algal growth, and raise the pH to a neutral 7.
The water then passes through a clarifier, which allows undissolved solids to settle, followed by sand filter beds for additional purification. Carbon filters remove residual colour and taste, bringing the water to a standard described by plant staff as “almost okay for consumption” — suitable for domestic use within the facility and for firefighting.
However, the standards required for steam generation are considerably higher. The plant puts the water through a demineralization process involving three stages: a cation exchange vessel that removes positively charged ions including sodium, calcium, and magnesium; an anion exchange vessel that removes negatively charged ions; and a final mixed bed vessel that captures any ions that passed through the earlier stages.
Plant officials identified silica as their “biggest problem,” explaining that any silica remaining in the water can cause dangerous pressure build-up inside the boiler. The resins used in the demineralization process are regenerated with chemicals when spent, and the plant’s laboratory continuously monitors water purity.
The plant also draws raw water from a nearby lagoon, but this is used exclusively for cooling purposes — specifically to cool spent steam after it has driven the turbines, allowing it to condense and re-enter the system. Treating saltwater for steam generation, officials explained, would be significantly more expensive. A multi-stage screening system, including bar screens with gaps of 100mm and 10mm respectively, along with automatic raking equipment and a crane for heavier debris, protects pumps and equipment from lagoon water contaminants.
From Boiler to National Grid
The demineralized water feeds into what plant documentation describes as a “B and W water tube boiler single drum radiant type” — a dual-fuel system capable of running on either gas or oil. The boiler operates at an extreme design pressure of 14,320 kilopascals, with a normal operating pressure of 12,000 kilopascals. Main steam temperatures reach 541°C, while reheated steam reaches 583°C.
Egbin has six generating units, each with its own boiler producing 220 MW. The high-pressure steam drives a sequence of three turbines — high-pressure, intermediate-pressure, and low-pressure — before the shaft, spinning at 3,000 revolutions per minute, drives a generator. The generator produces electricity at 16 kilovolts, which a step-up transformer immediately raises to 330 kilovolts for transmission across the national grid via eight lines, six of which are 330 kilovolt lines.
Spent steam is not discharged. It passes through a condenser where it exchanges heat with the cooler lagoon water, returns to liquid form, and is recycled back into the system — a closed loop that reduces the volume of new water required.
Plant operations are monitored through a Human Machine Interface (HMI) system that allows operators to manage functions remotely. Officials noted, however, that physical inspection remains a necessary check against incorrect automated readings.
Redundancy by Design
One principle that the visiting engineers encountered repeatedly across the facility was the deliberate duplication of systems. Officials summed it up plainly: “almost everything is two, two or three, three or four.” Backup systems and parallel units are built in to keep the plant running when one component is under maintenance or develops a fault.
Engineers were also told, however, that certain core components — the main generator, the turbine, and the boiler of each unit — do not benefit from that same redundancy. A fault in any of these places a full unit out of service until repairs are completed, a fact that underscores the pressure placed on maintenance teams to act quickly and precisely.
What the Engineers Took Away
Participants left the facility with a clearer understanding of the scale and complexity involved in running a major power plant — from the chemistry of water treatment to the mechanics of electricity transmission. The visit also reinforced the importance of maintenance discipline and safety culture as operational necessities, not procedural formalities.
The Egbin tour formed part of a broader seven-week training initiative run by the NSE Ikeja Branch for its cohort of young engineers, aimed at bridging the gap between academic study and industrial practice.
This report was filed with input from Engr. Yusuf. Egbin Power Plc is located in Ikorodu, Lagos State, Nigeria.