Senate nullification of tariff hike will reverse progress made in power sector             

Stakeholders among operators and regulators of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) have faulted the decision of the Senate on Tuesday, that nullified an approval on February 1 by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), warranting electricity tariff increase by all electricity distribution companies (Discos) operating in the country.

According to a senior staff from NERC speaking with BusinessDay on phone anonymously, “such a decision by the Nigerian Senate can only take us back to the energy poverty levels of 1999, when the whole country was served by only 1900 megawatts of electricity.

“Nobody wants to pay more for any service anywhere even if it is good, but this is a collective responsibility that Nigerians have to take to be better served, as those who invest to make the sector efficient must also recover their investments.”

The Senate on Tuesday directed the ministry of power as well as NERC and the 11 Discos operating in the country to immediately suspend the increase in electricity tariffs by an average of 40 percent, which they announced had commenced February 1.

This followed a motion by Suleiman Nafiz, senator representing Bauchi North Senatorial District, urging the Senate to probe how funds given to electricity companies had been spent.

YANGE IKYAA