By Juliet Uduji
The Minister of Power, Sale Mamman, on Friday dismissed concerns of a major hike in electricity tariff, as he clarified that there was no plan to significantly raise tariff.
Mamman said instead of a significant hike in electricity tariff, Nigerians should expect increased efficiency in the sector to reduce tariff, while managing headwinds from foreign exchange and inflation.
The clarification came amidst reports of a possible major increase in the tariff payable by electricity consumers nationwide beginning from July this year.
The power minister in a statement issued in Abuja, which he personally signed, stated that the order by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission on April 26, 2021 titled “Notice of Minor and Extraordinary Review of Tariffs for Electricity Transmission and Distribution Companies,” was a routine procedure.
He said the review being planned by the NERC was in accordance with Section 76 of the Electric Power Sector Reform Act of 2005.
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Mamman said, “The tariff for customers on service bands D and E (customers being served less than an average of 12 hours of supply per day over a period of one month) remains subsidised in line with the policy direction of the Federal Government.”
He said Section 76 of the Electric Power Sector Reform Act of 2005 provided clear guidelines for the periodic review of tariff based on market data and submissions from licensees.