Nigerians will from Wednesday, April 1, 2020, pay more for electricity, The PUNCH reports.

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission had disclosed this in its December 2019 Minor Review of Multi-Year Tariff Order 2015 and Minimum Remittance Order for the Year 2020.

Checks by The PUNCH on Monday showed that the decision to increase tariff had not yet been suspended despite the lockdown occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic.

A top source at Ikeja Electric told The PUNCH that the firm had not received any directive from NERC as regards reversal of the plan.

He said, “According to the tariff order for the year, we are supposed to increase on April 1, 2020. So far, we have not received any directive not to go ahead.”

Efforts to get NERC to speak on the matter were not successful on Monday as the spokesman for the commission, Usman Arabi, said he was not around but on a course at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies.

Arabi’s substitute, however, did not respond to calls or a text message sent to him.

NERC had disclosed in its December 2019 Minor Review of Multi-Year Tariff Order 2015 and Minimum Remittance Order for the Year 2020 that the order was issued to reflect the impact of changes in the minor review variables in the determination of cost-reflective tariffs and relevant tariff and market shortfalls for 2019 and 2020.

The commission said the order also determined the minimum remittances payable by the distribution companies in meeting their market obligations based on the allowed tariffs.

It said, “The Federal Government’s updated Power Sector Recovery Programme does not envisage an immediate increase in end-user tariffs until April 1, 2020, and a transition to full cost reflectivity by end of 2021.