MUCH ADO ABOUT ELECTRICITY ACT, 2023
The Amendment Bill will undermine the vision of a decentralised electricity market
Electricity regulators under the aegis of State Electricity Regulatory Commissions (SERCs) have warned that the proposed Electricity Act 2023 Amendment Bill 2026, could reverse hard-won reforms in the sector and defeat the idea of a federal structure. In a memorandum submitted to the Senate Committee on Power, these regulators argued that the amendment bill “threatens the constitutional and regulatory foundations” that enabled states to begin building their own electricity markets and the constitutional amendments that expanded sub-national powers in the sector.
We recall that on 17 March 2023, late President Muhammadu Buhari assented to the 5th Alteration Bills, 2023, thus devolving power from the Exclusive Legislative List to Concurrent Legislative List. Combined with the consequential Electricity Act enacted same year, that presidential assent fully decentralised electricity supply industry in Nigeria, making it possible for states to participate in its generation, transmission, and distribution. Since then, no fewer than 16 states have passed laws to establish their state electricity markets, with Enugu taking the lead.
