In a surprise move, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission has approved an increase in electricity tariffs with effect from September 1, 2020 (today).
This comes three months after the tariff hike implementation slated for July 1 was halted by the National Assembly, which prevailed on the distribution companies to shelve the date to the first quarter of 2021 due to the current economic challenges in Nigeria.
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But a NERC document seen by The PUNCH on Tuesday showed that electricity customers, except those receiving less than 12 hours of supply, would have to pay more for electricity starting from September 1, 2020.
According to the document, the new tariff is based on the hours of electricity supply available to the customers.
Customers are categorized into maximum demand and non-maximum demand customers, as against the previous categories of residential, commercial, and industrial customers, with different bands (A to E) depending on the level of supply.
For Ikeja Electric, a residential customer on single-phase receiving a minimum of 12 hours of supply will now pay N42.73 per KWh, up from N21.30 per kWh.
For Eko Electricity Distribution Company, a residential customer on single-phase receiving a minimum of 12 hours of supply will now pay N43.01 per kWh, up from N24 per kWh.
This should not be. People should pay on what they use. They should pay for 12 hoursif they use electricity for 12 hours