Despite its promises for improved electricity supply at customer-friendly tariff and cost regime, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has approval an upward adjustment in the prices of prepaid electricity meters.
The regulatory commission, in a circular dated September 5, 2023 and signed by its Chairman, Sanusi Garba, and the Commissioner of Legal, Licensing, and Compliance, Dafe Akpeneye, the commission directed that a single-phase prepaid meter will now be sold to consumers at N81,975.16k, up from the previous N58,661.69k.
Similarly, it ordered that the cost of a three-phase prepaid meter would now sold to consumers at N143,836.10k, up from the previous N109,684.36k.
According to the NERC, the basis of the upward adjustment of the meters is to create an equitable and sensible meter pricing system that will be fair to both Meter Asset Providers (MAPs) and customers.
The circular further indicated that the upward adjustment of the prices of the meters was to: “Ensure MAP’s ability to recover reasonable costs associated with meter procurement and maintenance while ensuring that their pricing structure allows for a viable return on investment.
“Evaluate the affordability of meter services for consumers, aiming to prevent excessive pricing that could burden end-users.
“Ensure that MAPs are able to provide meters to end-use customers in the prevailing economic realities”, the NERC added.
