ABUJA Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) has apologised to its customers for wrongfully charging them following the tariff increase approved by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
This was contained in a statement posted via the organisation’s official X handle on Thursday, April 4.
According to the statement, the error resulted from a glitch in the reclassification of some Band A customers to a lower band.
“This was due to a system glitch caused by the reclassification of some Band A customers who have now been downgraded to Band B due to the number of hours of electricity supply enjoyed over the past few weeks. These erstwhile Band A customers who vended were charged the new tariff of N225 per kilowatt hour,” the statement noted.
AEDC also disclosed in its statement that efforts were being made to identify those affected, adding that some Band A customers were also charged at the old rate rather than N225/kilowatt.
“Once the glitch is resolved, this category of customers will now recharge their metres at the new rate of N225, which will ensure they enjoy a minimum supply of 20 hours daily,” the statement read.
The ICIR reported that NERC approved a tariff hike for Band A customers, who enjoy up to 20 hours of power supply.
On Tuesday, April 3, the NERC’s vice-chairman, Musliu Oseni said the increase would not affect customers on other bands, and it had taken effect from April 1.
On Tuesday, April 2, Bloomberg reported that Nigeria would triple energy costs for 15 per cent of energy users, a move aimed at attracting investors into the sector.
Quoting sources in the presidency, Bloomberg reported that the tariff would be increased from N68 to as high as N200/kilowatt-hour, while subsidy would remain for those consuming less electricity.
In 2021, The ICIR reported that electricity Distribution Companies (Discos) were ripping customers off through the tariff band methodology, as customers were not being supplied with hours of electricity commensurate to their bands.
Despite not receiving the required hours of electricity, customers, mostly those on higher bands, pay higher tariffs for power supply, which is mostly epileptic across Nigeria.
Poor power supply in Nigeria contributes majorly to poor industrialisation, high unemployment, and stagnating rural development.
Ijeoma Opara is a journalist with The ICIR. Reach her via vopara@icirnigeria.org or @ije_le on Twitter.