The Enugu State Electricity Regulatory Commission (EERC) has issued a new tariff to MainPower Electricity Distribution Limited.
MainPower is the electricity company in Enugu State which succeeded Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC).
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Slashing of tariff
EERC has now issued an order compelling MainPower to slash the electricity tariff in the South-eastern state.
The order with the number: EERC/2025/003 was issued on Saturday and entitled “Tariff Order for MainPower Electricity Distribution Limited 2025.”
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The reviewed electricity cost for Band A is brought down from N209/ kWh (per kiloWatt) to N160/kWh.
The new tariff would take effect from 1 August 2025, according to the EER.
The regulatory commission said its decision was cost reflective, insisting that tariffs must reflect power generation subsidies by the federal government for the benefit of electricity consumers.
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The EER noted that it issued the order in compliance with the Enugu State Electricity Law 2023 which empowers the commission to regulate the activities of electricity companies in the state.
‘Why we reduced electricity tariff’- EER
Speaking to reporters in Enugu on Saturday, the Chairperson of the EER, Chijioke Okonkwo, said the reduction in tariff followed the commission’s review of MainPower’s tariff and licence applications as the new subsidiary company that operates in Enugu State.
“We reviewed their entire costs, using our Tariff Methodology Regulations 2024, and the supporting Distribution Tariff Model to get an average price of N94.
“The price is low due to some reasons and including the fact the federal government is subsidising electricity generation cost which comes to a cost of about N45 out of the actual cost of N112 for Enugu State,” Mr Okonkwo explained.
“That was how we came about the average tariff of N94 as cost reflective tariff at our level as a subnational electricity market.”
The chairperson said that the actual Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) cost of purchase made by Mainpower outside the federal government’s subsidised power would trigger automatic tariff adjustment to accommodate the PPA price given that such power would not be subsidised.
“Breaking this across the various tariff bands means that Band A will be paying N160 while other Bands B, C, D, and E are frozen.
“Band A at N160 will help MainPower to manage the rate shock, and if the subsidy is removed, the savings will assist them in stabilising the tariff over a defined period of time. Nevertheless, at all times, the tariff will be cost reflective and will not require any state subsidy,” he stated.
Mr Okonkwo, however, said the new N160 Band A tariff could be difficult to sustain should the federal government remove the generation tariff subsidy currently being enjoyed by electricity consumers throughout the country, as tariffs would most likely rise.
“But until then, it is only right that Ndi Enugu – Band A customers enjoy the reduced tariff effective August 1, 2025,” he said.
‘We will begin monitoring compliance’
Mr Okonkwo also announced that EERC had put in place monitoring and evaluation systems and guidelines to ensure MainPower’s compliance with service commitments so that its customers do not pay more for less power.
“MainPower is obliged to publish daily on its website a rolling seven-day average daily hours of supply on each Bank A feeder no later than 9a.m. of the next day.
“Where MainPower fails to deliver on the committed level of service on Band A feeder for two consecutive days, MainPower shall report this to the commission within 24 hours,” he said.
“Where MainPower fails to meet the committed service level to a Band A feeder for seven consecutive days, the feeder shall be automatically downgraded to the recorded level of supply.”
The chairperson assured that the commission was committed to working with industry developers, investors and customers to develop access and improve electricity services to Enugu people.
“This is a win for the establishment,” he stated.
Background
In March 2023, the National Assembly passed 16 constitutional amendment bills, one of which had to do with devolution of powers to allow states to generate, transmit and distribute electricity.
In June 2024, President Bola Tinubu assented to the electricity bill, which authorises states, companies, and individuals to generate, transmit and distribute electricity.
The new electricity law repeals the Electric Power Sector Reform Act, signed by the then Nigerian President, Olusegun Obasanjo, in 2005.
With the new law, states would be able to issue licenses to private investors who can operate mini-grids and power plants, but such state licenses are not to extend to inter-state or transnational distribution of electricity.
In the South-east, Enugu State was the first to seek regulatory oversight by enacting the Enugu State Electricity Law, 2023, which established EERC as an agency responsible for the distribution and regulation of power in the state.
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission subsequently transferred the regulatory oversight of the electricity market in Enugu State to EER in April 2024.
In exercise of regulatory powers, EERC, in October last year, licensed Mainpower Electricity Distribution Limited to replace the EEDC in distributing electricity in Enugu State.
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