The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has approved a substantial increase in electricity tariffs for Band A customers.
The announcement came from Musliu Oseni, the NERC vice-chairman, during a press briefing in Abuja on Wednesday.
Starting April 3, customers falling under this high-usage category, who typically enjoy around 20 hours of electricity daily, will see their rates surge from N66 to N225 per kilowatt-hour—a hike that nearly triples the existing cost.
Oseni clarified that the increment would impact a specific customer segment.
“The commission sat and reviewed further the application by the distribution companies and have decided that only the 17 percent feeders and less than 15 percent customers will be affected by any rate increase that the commission will ever approve for the DisCos,” Oseni said.
“Further to that, the commission has issued an order titled ‘April 2024 Supplementary Order’ which is supplementary to the order issued in December, effective January 2024.
“So, the April Supplementary order takes effect from today and in that order, the commission has approved a rate review of N225 per kilowatt-hour for just under 50 percent of the customer population in NESI.
“So that means that less than 15 percent of the customers will be affected. And I am sure you are aware of the number of customers we have in NESI. And these are the customers that are proven to be enjoying 20 hours of average hours of supply.”
He reassured that the majority of the previously categorized Band A customers would remain unaffected, emphasizing the targeted nature of this tariff revision.
