An energy expert and public policy analyst, Abdulrazaq Hamzat, has called for the adoption of different models for payment of electricity bills by the 36 states of the federation.
He said the current national tariff framework was outdated, centralised and fundamentally misaligned with Nigeria’s federal structure and the Electricity Act 2023.
“Expecting Enugu to pay the same electricity tariff as Lagos is both illogical and unjust. Nigeria is a federation, and our energy pricing must reflect that,” Hamzat said.
He argued that electricity tariffs must be rooted in service delivery, not political grandstanding and urged the National Electricity Regulation Council (NERC) to adopt a suite of tariff models tailored to state-specific economic realities, infrastructure status, and energy goals.
Hamzat noted that the Electricity Act 2023, which devolves power to subnational governments, gives states the authority to generate, transmit, and distribute electricity within their domains.
He praised states like Lagos, Kaduna and Edo for already moving towards localised energy governance, including setting up independent regulatory frameworks.
“The future of Nigeria’s power sector is decentralized. NERC must stop imposing blanket decisions disconnected from ground realities,” Hamzat stressed.
He warned that if NERC fails to evolve with the times, it risks becoming an obstacle to progress rather than a partner in Nigeria’s energy transformation.
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