The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has imposed a fine of N200 million on Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) for wrongful billing of customers following a recent hike in electricity tariffs.
This is contained in a circular from the management of the commission dated April 5, 2024.
NERC noted that the Disco refused to comply with the prescribed customer band classifications for the tariff billing.
The commission said, upon a detailed assessment, that AEDC did not adhere to fair billing practices, applying the new tariff indiscriminately across all customer categories instead of just those in Band A.
- “The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (“Commission”) has taken enforcement action against the Abuja Electricity Distribution Plc (“AEDC”) for non-compliance with the Supplementary Order to the April 2024 Multi-Year Tariff Order 2024 for AEDC (the “Order”).
- “AEDC has been fined N200,000,000 (Two Hundred Million Naira) for failure to comply with the prescribed customer band classifications for the tariff billing.
- “This decision follows a detailed review and customer feedback, which revealed that AEDC had applied the new tariff to all customer bands, contrary to the Order, which was designed to ensure fair billing practices,” NERC said.
Immediate Reimbursement of Customers under Band B to E
NERC further ordered AEDC to reimburse all customers who were charged the new electricity bill tariff but are not under the Band A category.
According to the commission, this reimbursement must be done through the provision of the balance of customer tokens that the affected customers would be entitled to receive.
Furthermore, NERC stipulated that the reimbursement must be completed by no later than 11 April 2024.
- “AEDC is therefore mandated to:
- “Reimburse all customers in Bands B, C, D and E respectively that were billed above the allowed customer categories/tariff bands provided in the Order.
- “Reimburse through the provision of the balance of customer tokens that the affected customers would be entitled to receive at the applicable rates and all token reimbursements shall be issued to the affected customers by 11 April 2024.
- “The action by the Commission underscores its commitment to protecting consumer rights and ensuring equitable practices within Nigeria’s electricity,” NERC said.
What you should know
After NERC announced a tariff increase for customers in the Band A category, Abuja Disco applied the new rates to certain customers, whom the company believed fell into the affected category.
The company, however, issued an apology stating that the increase in tariff was as a result of system glitch as the customers had already been downgraded to Band B.
- “This is to inform customers across the Abuja Electricity Distribution Plc (AEDC) franchise that we are aware of the wrong charges faced by some Band A customers who tried to recharge their meters following the new tariff regime.
- “This was due to a system glitch caused by the reclassification of some Band A customers who have now been downgraded to Band B due to the number of hours of electricity supply enjoyed over the past few weeks.
- “These erstwhile Band A customers who vended were charged the new tariff of N225 per Kilowatt Hour. Our team is working to identify the customers affected and all excess charges will be refunded,” AEDC said.
