The Federal Government, on Monday, stated that talks are underway with the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission and power distribution companies to compensate high-paying Band A users for the days of blackout in the north.
“They will be exempt from billing for those periods,” the Minister of Power, Mr Adebayo Adelabu, told journalists after briefing President Bola Tinubu at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja.
Adelabu stressed that customers who experienced prolonged outages would not be billed for the period of the outage, ensuring that residential, commercial, and industrial consumers are exempt from charges during the blackout.
A widespread power failure affected 17 northern states in Nigeria, leaving millions without electricity as they contend with a prolonged blackout.
Authorities blamed vandals who damaged the critical Shiroro-Kaduna transmission line, a major conduit supplying electricity to the north.
Moreover, swift repairs have been challenging due to security concerns for the maintenance crew, the FG stated.
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When asked if it plans to direct service to compensate those who have suffered from the blackout, especially those on Band A, the minister replied, “Yes, we are working on something.”
He continued: “I’m going to have a meeting with the chairman of NERC and all the DISCOs.
“For those days during which they suffered a blackout, there should be no billing of any sort for any customer, be they household consumers, office consumers, or industrial consumers.
“They will be exempt from billing for those periods.”
The Electricity Regulatory Commission of Nigeria groups power consumers into five bands—A through E—based on the reliability of their electricity supply, balancing service quality with tariffs.
Band A consumers, who receive a minimum of 20 hours of electricity per day, pay the highest rates, typically between N55 and N60 per kilowatt-hour (kWh).
Band B consumers, who experience between 16 and 20 hours of electricity daily, pay slightly lower rates, around N225 per kWh.
Band C customers have access to a minimum of 12 hours per day.
Category D customers receive a minimum of 8 hours of electricity per day.
Band E customers have access to a minimum of 4 hours per day.
NERC states that the band-based tariff structure not only attempts to balance rates with actual supply but also aims to motivate distribution companies to improve their services, as achieving higher reliability allows them to charge higher rates.
However, mismatches between promised and actual supply levels remain a challenge, with many consumers feeling they are often billed for unreliable power supply.
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