Minister of Power Adebayo Adelabu has announced that affected electricity customers will not be billed for the duration of the outages. The decision comes after severe disruptions to power supply caused by issues in key transmission lines across the north-east, north-west, and parts of the north-central regions.
Adelabu disclosed plans to meet with the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and distribution companies (DisCos) to solidify this no-billing policy, which he stated would apply to all categories of customers, including households, offices, and industrial consumers.
“There should not be billing of any sort for any customer… they would be immune from billings from those periods,” he assured.
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The outages began on October 22, when the 330-kilovolt (kV) Ugwaji-Apir transmission lines tripped, impacting major areas in northern Nigeria. Shortly after, vandalism on the Shiroro-Kaduna line further disrupted power, cutting off electricity in key cities like Kaduna and Kano.
The crisis deepened on October 24, when a 330 kV line snapped in a swampy forest area of Benue State, compounding the power challenges.
Grassroots Parrot ealier reports that President Bola Tinubu directed the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) to expedite repairs and ordered National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu to collaborate with the Nigerian Army and Air Force to secure vulnerable transmission facilities.
Adelabu expressed optimism about the quick restoration of power, crediting national security support from the Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Air Staff.
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He emphasized that the government aims to prevent residents and businesses from bearing financial burdens for electricity they could not access, stressing the ministry’s commitment to relief during this period of hardship.
This policy has been widely welcomed by northern residents and businesses, who face ongoing economic challenges from the blackout.