Citizens Start Paying More Electricity Bills Today

Sunday Williams

1 July 2011

With effect from today, Nigerians will start paying more money for electricity.From N8.50 kobo, electricity consumers will now pay N10 per kilowatt hour for electricity.

This is in line with the directives issued to all the 11 distribution companies by the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

The NERC had directed the Chief Executives of Distribution Companies to as from today commence the implementation of the last schedule of the 2008/2013 regime of Multi Year Tariff Order (MYTO).

The new tariff is coming at a time when the country’s electricity generation is put at 3,400 megawatts.

The new tariff is different from the on-going MYTO review by NERC which is due to take effect from January 2012 in line with the power sector reform.

Speaking to Daily Trust on the increase, industry analysts expressed different positions.

While some expressed support for the new price, others kicked against it.

The Publisher of Power & Energy Digest, Abdullahi Baba Yayaha said the present management of NERC is too academic for people to understand.

He said that both the Presidential Task Force on Power, the former Minister of State for power and even NERC have told Nigerians that the take off date for the new tariff is January 2012, adding that with the new increase, it becomes disheartening for electricity consumers to believe anyone.

“Though the NIPP projects have contributed to the electricity generation, transmission and distribution, nevertheless, the Presidential Task Force on Power is yet to convince anyone of its impact but they are busy trying to get an unjustifiable electricity tariff for their private companies to benefit the MYTO subsidy,” he said.

Also speaking, Mr. Eze Onyekpere, the Lead Director of Centre of Social Justice (CSJ) who has been following events in the new MYTO argued that the increase is in compliance with the 2008 MYTO increase for a cost reflective tariff in the country which falls in line with the provision of 2005 electricity Act.

“We are not yet into the new MYTO order but that does not mean that government should not be concerned with the ability of the people to pay, which should be considered in the expected MYTO,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) yesterday issued clarifications on the new increase, saying that the slight adjustments is not an increase in the existing tariff but is part of the MYTO that came into effect in 2008.

A statement from the Chairman/CEO of the commission Dr. Sam Amadi said that the increase is in routine keeping with the provisions of Sections 76 of the Electric Power Sector Reform Act 2005, that electricity tariff has auto-adjusted to reflect current cost of gas and general inflation.

He said the adjustment should not be misconstrued as price review by the Commission.

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