ENUGU – Stakeholders in Nigeria’s electricity sector have called for innovative pricing frameworks and alternative subsidy models as states increasingly assume responsibility for regulating and developing their electricity markets.
They made the call on Thursday in Enugu at the Stakeholder Workshop on Electricity Price Reforms and Sub-National Regulation under the PACE Project: Renewable Energy Transition Partnership (RETP).
The event was organised by the International Centre for Energy, Environment and Development (ICEED) in collaboration with the Enugu State Electricity Regulatory Commission (EERC), with support from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) Partnership for Agile Governance and Climate Engagement (PACE).
The workshop brought together policymakers, state regulators, utility operators, development partners, investors and industry experts to discuss electricity pricing and subsidy implementation under Nigeria’s evolving decentralised electricity market.
In his address, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, EERC, Mr Chijioke Okonkwo, described the workshop as timely, noting that Nigeria was transitioning from a centrally regulated electricity market to a decentralised framework empowering states to regulate their own electricity sectors.
Okonkwo said electricity pricing remained critical to economic growth, industrial development and citizens’ welfare.
He explained that tariff design influenced investment decisions, operational efficiency, consumer welfare and long-term sector sustainability.
He said the workshop was designed to examine current pricing mechanisms, assess the impact of government interventions and develop strategies to support recovery and growth in the electricity sector.
According to him, discussions would also focus on how federal government interventions in electricity pricing affect state-level electricity market development and the implementation of accurate pricing systems.
“Customers have different experiences in the electricity delivered to them.
“We are having this conversation to understand how federal government interventions impact state market development and electricity pricing,” he said.
Okonkwo said that state owned electricity regulatory commissions were invited to ensure broad participation, adding that states were progressing at different stages of market development.
He advocated a bottom-up approach to electricity reforms, arguing that state regulators were better positioned to understand local realities and develop regulations that directly address consumers’ needs.
The EERC chairman noted that cost-reflective tariffs would improve investor confidence, attract long-term investment and support sustainable service delivery across the sector.
Responding to concerns about implementation, Mr Joseph Ter-Jer, Benue State Commissioner for Power, Renewable Energy and Transport, said that legal and regulatory frameworks were already being established to support the reforms.
Ter-Jer said the outcome of the workshop would reach policy levels at both federal and state governments and create pathways for the gradual withdrawal of inefficient subsidy regimes in the electricity industry.
“We want an electricity market that operates efficiently, just as the telecom sector evolved through competition, innovation and customer-focused services,” he said.
Also speaking, Mr Iguwo Ukwu, Executive Director, Legal and Regulatory Services, Abia State Electricity Regulatory Authority, stressed that electricity production and delivery involved substantial costs and that consumers must ultimately pay for the service.
Ukwu said subsidies should be targeted at vulnerable groups rather than applied broadly, noting that sustainable electricity markets required cost recovery to ensure continued service provision.
In a goodwill message, Gov. Peter Mbah of Enugu State, said the recent reforms had created unprecedented opportunities for states to expand access to electricity, improve service delivery, attract investment and stimulate economic growth.
Mbah, represented by the Secretary to the Enugu State Government, Prof. Chidiebere Onyia, urged participants to embrace innovation and collaboration in developing practical solutions that would deliver reliable, affordable and sustainable electricity.
Also speaking, Mr Ifeanyi Ugwuoke of the FCDO, said the organisation became involved in electricity sector reform discussions through its focus on renewable energy transition and climate engagement.
He said Nigeria faced significant energy poverty and that the decentralisation enabled by the Electricity Act presented an opportunity to address longstanding regulatory, pricing, generation, transmission and distribution challenges. (NAN)
