In a surprise move, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission has approved an increase in electricity tariff 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 .

But a NERC document seen by The PUNCH, 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 categorised 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 N 42 . 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 N 24 per kWh .

For Abuja Electricity Distribution Company , a residential customer on single – phase receiving between 12 to 16 hours of supply will now be charged N45 . 69 per KWh, up from N24 . 30 per kWh.

Kaduna Electric announced on Twitter on Monday night that non – MD receiving between 12 and 16 hours will be charged N50 . 10 per KWh, adding that the tariffs for customers receiving less than 12 hours had been temporarily frozen.

“ Following consultations and directions on tariff policy , the commission hereby approves a deferment of the applicable tariffs for customers in service bands D and E ( that is customers with a service commitment of less than an average of 12 hours supply per day over a period of one month ) for the period September 1 , 2020 to January 1 , 2021 , ” NERC said .

It said the Discos would only be allowed to charge those customers the new tariffs upon investments that improve the quality of service experience , “ thus migrating customers to higher service bands or another order of the commission . ”

Punch