Amidst the electricity tariff hike, not less than 12 states, including Lagos and Kano have tidied up arrangements to start generating power in their respective states in conformity with the Electricity Act 2023.
The Electricity Act permits the state electricity board or any state authority by whatever appellation, to grant licenses for mini-grids and provide the framework for the operation of such licenses.
The PUNCH gathered on Thursday that some of these states had established their electricity market laws and were waiting for the approval of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission to have independent regulatory bodies different from the NERC owned by the Federal Government.
Meanwhile, the 240% power tariff hike by the Federal Government for consumers in Band A enjoying 20-hour electricity attracted more condemnations on Thursday.
The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Associations of Nigeria, civil society organisations and the Nigeria Electricity Consumer Advocacy Network cautioned that the hike would worsen the plight of Nigerians.
The subsidy on electricity has been withdrawn completely from the tariff payable by power consumers in the Band A category, who constitute about 15% of the total number of power users across the country.
The government, through the NERC, announced the hike in the electricity bill was announced by the government through the NERC on Wednesday, stating that those affected would now pay a tariff of N225 per kilowatt-hour, up from the previous rate of N68/kWh, representing about 240% increment.
Recall that in June 2023, President Bola Tinubu signed a new Electricity Act into law, heeding the calls of Nigerians that the power sector be reformed and removed from the exclusive list, to give states the power to generate, transmit and distribute electricity within their jurisdiction.
With this, the Federal Government has succeeded in removing electricity from the exclusive list, allowing states and private individuals to invest in the sector.
The PUNCH reports that the new law replaces the 2005 Electricity and Power Sector Reform Act as it seeks to promote private sector investments in the power sector. It provides for a holistic integrated resource plan and policy that recognises all sources for the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity.
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