The Forum for Commissioners of Power and Energy in Nigeria (FOCPEN) has condemned the power reduction and ongoing outages in Enugu State by the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC), describing it as a “dangerous precedent of lawlessness.”
The Forum, in a statement signed by its Chairman and Secretary, Prince Eka Williams and Barrister Omale Omale respectively, said the action was not merely a regulatory dispute with the Regulator, but a declaration of war on the people of the state and a grave violation of its license obligations under existing national electricity regulations.
On the 23rd of July, FOCPEN issued a statement to clarify recent developments in the Enugu State electricity market and reassured investors and stakeholders about the direction of electricity sector reforms across Nigerian states. The statement supported the Enugu State Electricity Regulatory Commission’s (EERC) decision to review and adjust electricity tariffs within its jurisdiction, ensuring they are fair to electricity consumers and sufficient to allow licensees to recover their operating expenses and investments.
FOCPEN, in its latest statement titled “Power Reduction to Enugu State: A Dangerous Precedent of Lawlessness by Enugu Electricity Distribution Company,” stated: “The Forum for Commissioners of Power and Energy in Nigeria (FOCPEN) strongly condemns the recent and ongoing power outages in Enugu State, which are attributable to a deliberate action by Enugu Electricity Distribution Company PLC (EEDC) to reduce power to the Enugu State electricity market.
“EEDC has based its decision on the recent tariff order issued to its subsidiary company, MainPower Electricity Distribution Limited (“Main Power”), by the Enugu Electricity Regulatory Commission (the “Regulator”), which reduced Band A electricity tariffs from N209/kwh to N160/kwh effective from August 1st, 2025.
“FOCPEN views this unilateral action by EEDC not merely as a regulatory dispute with the Regulator, but as a declaration of war on the good people of Enugu State by EEDC. FOCPEN wishes to state that EEDC’s reckless action is a grave violation of its license obligations under existing national electricity regulations. EEDC’s action is also a clear demonstration of the flawed privatization process that has empowered private investors of DisCos to deprive citizens of essential electricity services with impunity.”
Forum unequivocally stated that if MainPower or EEDC believe the tariff as set by the Regulator is inadequate, the appropriate and legal path is to seek a review through established regulatory processes. It added that to resort to an arbitrary disconnection or reduction of power by up to 50 percent to a State is a smack of blackmail by EEDC.
The forum also maintained that EEDC’s action portends grave danger for consumer rights in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI), and undermines the ongoing implementation of State Electricity Markets (SEM).
“Furthermore, it exposes the alarming market power of DisCos to hold electricity regulators at sub-national and at the federal level, to ransom. EEDC’s action sets a dangerous precedent for other DisCos to undermine the successful implementation of the Electricity Act 2023 and decentralization of electricity regulations.”
FOCPEN, however, urged the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to immediately call EEDC to order, noting that NERC, as the current regulator of EEDC, must investigate this matter thoroughly and sanction this unacceptable action by EEDC, which the Forum believes has no regulatory approval from NERC.
To prevent such reckless action by a Distribution Licensee from happening again, FOCPEN demands for ministerial Intervention, regulatory reform of the wholesale market, and application of regulatory sanctions against EEDC.