Barely 18 hours after announcing a tariff hike, the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) on Monday backtracked.
The management, in a public announcement to its customers, urged the customers to ignore its previous announcement of an upward tariff review.
AEDC noted that the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) was yet to approve such an increase for the company.
It said: “Please disregard the communication circulating in the media regarding the review of electricity tariffs. Be informed that no approval for such an increment has been received. We regret any inconvenience.”
The company on Monday night issued a public service announcement saying it would increase its tariff effective from 1st July 2023 because of the exchange rate that has soared from N451 in 2022 to N750.
AEDC said, “For customers within bands B and C, with supply hours ranging from 12 to 16 per day, the new base tariff is expected to be N100 per kWh while Bands A with (20 hours and above) and B (16 to 20 hours) will experience comparatively higher tariffs.”
The message reads in part: Public Service Announcement.
Dear Valued Customers,
“Effective July 1st 2023, please be informed that there will be an upward review to the electricity tariff influenced by the fluctuating exchange rate.
“Under the MYTO 2022 guidelines, the previously set exchange rate of N441/$1 may now be revised to approximately N750/$1 which will have an impact on the tariffs associated with your electricity consumption.”