The House of Representatives on Tuesday directed the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to halt the rollout of the new electricity tariff.

The decision was reached after the adoption of a motion of urgent public importance, spearheaded by Nkemkanma Kama, a lawmaker from the Labour Party (LP) representing Ebonyi state.

Recall that on April 3, NERC approved an increase in electricity tariffs for customers belonging to Band A, which led to legislative action.

Customers in this category, who receive 20 hours of electricity per day, were supposed to start paying N225 per kilowatt (kW), a significant increase from the previous tariff of N66.

Meanwhile, yesterday, during a hearing at the Senate Committee on Power, Adebayo Adelabu, Minister of Power, defended the tariff hike by stating that the Federal Government could no longer afford to provide subsidies on power.

He said for the sector to be revived, the government needs to spend about $10 billion annually in the next 10 years.

“This is because of the infrastructure requirement for the stability of the sector, but the government cannot afford that,” the minister had said.

Adelabu has stated that the electricity sector is attracting more investors due to the increase in electricity tariff for Band A customers.