7th June, 2011
Following nationwide protests over the introduction of new electricity tariffs in the country, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) seems to have reversed its earlier decision as the chairman of the commission, Sam Amadi, says the new tariff will now come into effect January 2012.
The new tariff were formerly to be announced this month, after all parameters associated with generation, transmission and distribution are worked out.
However, making this disclosure Last week at a stakeholders consultation workshop in Abuja on the major review of the Multi-Year Tariff Order (MYTO), Amadi noted that President Goodluck Jonathan had approved a new date for the implementation of the new tarif to enable further stakeholders consultations.
He said the commission was verifying data supplied by operators to ensure that the final tariff is fair to all stakeholders, “In this vein, operators will be required to defend the veracity of data submitted. In this way, the commission will promote transparency in the tariff determination process,†the Chairman explained.
Amadi said, “In recognition of the enormous challenge and in furtherance to his commitment to address the challenge of power supply in the country, President Goodluck Jonathan has granted approval that the revised electricity tariffs we expect to emerge from this consultative process take effect on 1 January 2012.
“This will among other things enable the commission to engage further with all relevant stakeholders for their understanding and also align the review dates with the calendar of most businesses especially in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) and the gas supply sector,†he added.
