Across Nigeria, millions of households and businesses are paying sharply higher electricity bills while enduring the same — or worse — power supply they have always known.
The frustration is widespread, stretching from Lagos and Abuja to Port Harcourt, Kano, Enugu, and Ibadan, and it is growing louder by the month.
At the centre of the anger are Band A customers — consumers classified by electricity distribution companies (DisCos) as receiving a minimum of 20 hours of electricity daily, and who are therefore charged the highest tariff rates in the country.
The service-based tariff regime, which the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) introduced to reward better-performing feeders with cost-reflective pricing, was meant to drive improved supply. For many Band A consumers, that improvement has simply not arrived.
In Lagos, fashion entrepreneur Mrs. Bisi Adeyemi put it plainly.
“My electricity bill has almost doubled within a few months. We were told Band A customers would enjoy stable power supply, but that is not what we are experiencing. Some days we receive barely 10 to 12 hours of electricity, yet the bills keep increasing,” she said.
SMEs Are Paying Twice — And Some May Not Survive
The hardest-hit group appears to be small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which were already struggling with inflation and weak consumer demand before the tariff increases compounded their burden.
In Kano, Musa Ibrahim, who operates a cold-room storage business, described the daily financial reality.
“Electricity used to be the cheaper option compared to generators. Today, I pay huge electricity bills and still spend heavily on fuel because supply remains unstable. We are effectively paying twice for power,” he said.
In Abuja, restaurant owner Esther Okonkwo said the situation is forcing her to consider reducing her workforce.
“Power is critical to my business — freezers, lighting, kitchen equipment and refrigeration all depend on it. We pay premium tariffs, but outages remain frequent. If this situation continues, many SMEs may not survive,” she warned.
Furthermore, in Port Harcourt, Engineer Tamuno Briggs said residents in his estate had formally challenged their Band A classification with their DisCo.
“We have repeatedly questioned the classification because the level of supply does not match what was promised. If customers are charged premium rates, they should receive premium service,” he said.
Estimated Bills, Empty Transformers, and Deepening Poverty
Beyond the tariff debate, consumer rights advocates have pointed to the continued use of estimated billing — where customers without prepaid meters receive bills based on projections rather than actual consumption.
In Enugu, civil servant Chinedu Eze described his neighbours’ monthly bills as “economic punishment.”
“Many of my neighbours do not have meters. Their estimated bills are outrageous. Even when transformers break down and communities remain in darkness for days, bills still arrive without fail,” he said.
For low-income households, the pressure is particularly acute. In Ibadan, trader Mrs. Kemi Alabi said families are now rationing electricity use entirely.
“Food prices are high, transportation costs are rising, and electricity bills keep increasing. Many households now think twice before switching on appliances because every naira counts,” she said.
NERC has consistently defended the tariff adjustments, arguing that service-based pricing is essential for the long-term viability of Nigeria’s electricity market and should push DisCos to improve delivery.
Meanwhile, the structural problems — inadequate generation capacity, a weak transmission network, widespread energy theft, and poor metering penetration — remain largely unresolved.
For a growing number of Nigerians, the verdict is direct: paying more for unreliable electricity is not progress. It is a burden they can no longer afford.
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