Court Dismisses Lawsuit Against Band A Electricity Tariff Review

The Federal High Court in Lagos has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) challenging the implementation of the Band A electricity tariff review by the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) and 11 others.

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) announced the ruling, delivered on Monday, which concluded that MAN’s case was an abuse of judicial process and premature, as it did not comply with Section 51 of the Electricity Act of 2023.

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EKO HOT BLOG reports that according to NERC, the court determined that MAN had not exhausted existing dispute resolution mechanisms, and therefore, the lawsuit lacked a reasonable cause of action.

MAN’s suit, filed in Lagos, disputed NERC’s tariff review, arguing that proper procedures under the Electricity Act were bypassed before AEDC and others applied for tariff adjustments in July 2023.

The association also contended that the April and May 2024 supplementary orders for tariff hikes unfairly targeted Band A consumers while excluding other categories.

MAN further claimed that Band A customers, who do not receive government subsidies and are guaranteed 20 hours of daily electricity, faced significant production cost increases due to the ₦209.50 per kilowatt-hour rate.

However, NERC maintained that the case was improperly instituted and that due legal processes had been overlooked.

As a result, the court struck out the case, supporting NERC’s argument that the suit was filed prematurely and without following the proper channels for dispute resolution.

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