The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission has drafted a timetable and proposals for consultations with stakeholders regarding its quest to implement the reviewed power tariffs beginning from April 2020.

It was gathered in Abuja on Friday that the commission had perfected plans to go ahead with its consultations on the matter, despite being mandated by the House of Representatives to halt any planned increase in electricity tariffs.

The Chairman, NERC, James Momoh, had stated on January 6, 2020, that the recent review of power tariffs which gave room for a hike in the electricity bills payable by power users was still subject to public consultations.

His explanation came as power distribution companies declared that the new electricity tariffs would become enforceable from April 1 this year.

But the House of Representatives had during the week ordered the commission to halt the proposed tariff hike.

On whether the commission would halt the implementation of tariff increase as directed by the House of Representatives, a senior official at the commission told our correspondent that a timetable for consultations on the matter had already been drafted.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonimity due to the sensitive nature of the matter, said, “There are going to be consultations just like the chairman said. We are drawing out a timetable and the proposal for that.

“Once we are able to get that approved, we will go ahead with it.”

The official argued that the commission had not started implementing the new tariff order and that it would be out of place to ask it to halt what it had yet to begin.

“Has the new order been implemented? It is a process that has not started, but was reported as if it has started by the media. So when they say we should stop it, are you saying we should stop what does not exist?” the NERC official asked.

The source added, “Like I told you earlier, on my table right now there are files for consultations on this matter and that is what we are going to tackle at the moment.”

Momoh had stated that the commission would embark on public consultations in the next three months on the matter.

He said, “If I may tell you my mind set on this, let me just say it that there is no immediate increase in tariff for customers. Go back and read that document. The proposed tariff review is what we are mandated to do as a regulator. We are to do it twice a year.

“We’ve done the first one around June. January is here and we have no other option but to do our job. We have done the review and it is subject to public consultation.”

Momoh added, “In the next three months, the entire commissioners and myself will be running from place to place to inform you, to update you for consultation. So there will be consultation. We have done our review and have given a report on what we saw based on all the indices for doing a review.

“We have not said it is binding tomorrow morning, rather we are going to now do the consultations. The order is simply a communication of what we have done as a regulator, looking at what it takes to increase or decrease tariffs.”

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