‘Less than 20% of Nigerians access 12hrs power daily’

.NERC cedes regulatory oversight of Ekiti electricity market

Vice President Kashim Shettima has urged states to be more conscious in attracting investments into the electricity sector to recapitalise distribution companies (DisCos) and foster increased supply and access.

He said the call became necessary following the revelation that less than 20 per cent of Nigerians have access to reliable energy for more than 12 hours daily.

Shettima submitted that another 45 per cent of Nigerians have no access to any form of electricity.

He submitted to a stakeholders’ interactive dialogue/workshop, organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Power, with the theme, “Confronting Nigeria’s Power Challenge as the Nation Migrates to a Multi-tier Electricity Market: A Legislative Intervention,” in Abuja.

Represented by Special Adviser to the President on Power, Office of the Vice President, Sadiq Wanka, the nation’s number two citizen observed that the dialogue was timely to address the challenges facing the sector.

He stated: “Indeed, by some estimates, less than 20 per cent of Nigerians have access to reliable energy of more than 12 hours per day. Forty-five per cent of Nigerians have no access to any form of electricity. And as a result, households and industries have been dependent on self-generation which is both more expensive and more polluting.

“The Electricity Act 2023 that was passed by the National Assembly and signed into law by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu seeks to overhaul the structure of the Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry. It proposes a structure that promotes more competition and greater scope for tailoring power solutions to local needs while transitioning to a market structure that would attract much-needed investments and promote environmental sustainability.

“The wholesale structural shift that the Electricity Act 2023 (as amended) and the associated constitutional amendment usher in, means we need to double down on ensuring an orderly transition to the new national electricity market framework.”

The Vice President added that there is a lot of re-organisation that needs to happen internally within the DisCos from a process and people perspective, adding that all these require time and patience.

He lauded the National Assembly for its steadfastness in leading the conversation on the orderly transition, and for demonstrating a willingness to review the recently passed Electricity Act.

Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, unveiled a proposal for the establishment of three gigawatts of solar energy sources across 25 states in the North and Southwest.

He said the plan would solve the nation’s power problems and encouraged state governments to invest in power generation.

The minister added that hydro energy would be deployed for the coastal cities, noting that Nigeria has witnessed an incessant collapse of transmission promoted by a lack of adequate infrastructure.

He regretted that there is no single backup for the national grid, urging alternative sources to address the embarrassing development.

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, lauded the committee for spearheading the legislative framework that supports the transformative agenda of the President.

This, he said, is in line with “our Legislative Agenda, which prioritises economic growth and transformation of key sectors of the economy, especially power.”

He noted that the forum and extensive consultations would have preceded the implementation of the new multi-tier electricity system.

Chairman of the committee, Victor Nwokolo, said the event was to provide a dynamic platform for stakeholders to evaluate progress made thus far in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).

He restated that discussions would revolve around the seamless transition to a Multi-Tier Electricity Market, as outlined in the Electricity Act of 2023.

The transition, he said, holds immense potential to enhance competition, efficiency and reliability within the electricity market, ultimately benefitting consumers and driving economic growth.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has ordered the transfer of regulatory oversight of the electricity market in Ekiti to Ekiti State Electricity Regulatory Bureau (EERB) in compliance with the 1999 Constitution (as amended)) and the Electricity Act 2023.

The directive, which is contained on the regulator’s official website, stressed that all transfers must be completed by October 22, 2024. The order was similar to the one issued to the Enugu Electricity Regulatory Commission (EERC).

NERC underscored that it retains the role as a central regulator with oversight on inter-state/international generation, transmission, supply, trading and system operations based on e extant laws.

It clarified that the Electricity Act mandates any state that intends to establish and regulate intra-state electricity markets to deliver a formal notification and requests NERC to transfer regulatory authority to the state regulator.

NERC explained that the Ekiti State government complied with the conditions precedent in the laws, duly notified the commission and requested for the transfer of regulatory oversight of the intrastate electricity.

The commission, therefore, emphasised that the transfer order has directed Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) and Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company PLC (IBEDC) to incorporate a subsidiary (BEDC SubCo and IBEDC SubCo) to assume responsibilities for intrastate supply and distribution of electricity in Ekiti State from BEDC and IBEDC.