Nigerian govt promises to compensate Band A users for blackout losses
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Nigerian govt promises to compensate Band A users for blackout losses

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The Federal Government announced on Monday that it is in discussions with the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and power distribution companies to provide compensation to high-paying Band A users affected by recent blackouts in northern Nigeria.

Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, revealed that those impacted by the outages will be exempt from billing for the blackout days. “They will be exempt from billing for those periods,” he stated during a press briefing after meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja.

Adelabu emphasized that customers enduring prolonged power outages would not incur charges for the duration of the disruptions, assuring that residential, commercial, and industrial users will all benefit from this exemption. A widespread blackout recently affected 17 northern states, leaving millions without electricity, which officials attributed to vandalism that damaged the vital Shiroro-Kaduna transmission line, a key source of electricity for the region.

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The minister acknowledged that swift repairs have been hindered by security concerns for maintenance crews.

When asked about plans to offer compensation for those suffering from the outages, particularly for Band A consumers, Adelabu affirmed, “Yes, we are working on something.”

He added, “I’m going to have a meeting with the chairman of NERC and all the DISCOs. For those days during which they suffered a blackout, there should be no billing of any sort for any customer, be they household consumers, office consumers, or industrial consumers. They will be exempt from billing for those periods.”

NERC categorizes electricity consumers into five bands—A through E—based on the reliability of their power supply, which reflects service quality against tariffs. Band A consumers, who receive a minimum of 20 hours of electricity daily, pay the highest rates, typically between N55 and N60 per kilowatt-hour (kWh).

In contrast, Band B consumers receive between 16 and 20 hours of electricity each day at slightly lower rates, around N225 per kWh, while Band C customers have access to a minimum of 12 hours. Category D consumers get at least 8 hours of electricity per day, and Band E consumers receive a minimum of 4 hours.

NERC’s band-based tariff structure aims to align rates with actual supply levels while encouraging distribution companies to enhance service reliability, enabling them to charge higher rates. However, many consumers continue to report discrepancies between promised and actual service, often feeling they are billed for unreliable power supply.

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