Electricity Tariff: We paid N300 million for one month, another Nigerian university cries out

The management of Babcock of University, Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State, has cried out over the “exorbitant” monthly electricity expenses charged by the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC).

The Vice-Chancellor/President of the university, Ademola Tayo, said the university paid N300 million as a bill in May after the reclassification of customers to Band A.

Mr Tayo made this known on Sunday morning during his address at the ongoing 22nd undergraduate and 13th postgraduate convocation of the university, where a total of 2,842 graduates from graduate and postgraduate schools are being celebrated.

The VC pleaded with the government to “review the electricity tariff of education institutions.”

“In Nigeria, investing in education is crucial for economic growth and development. We need policies that prioritise education funding and support universities in navigating these economic challenges,” he said.

Same story nationwide

Recently, the authorities at the College of Medicine of the University of Lagos (CMUL) and the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) also cried out over what they described as an outrageous electricity bill charged by Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) for the same month.

The healthcare institutions told PREMIUM TIMES that they were jointly presented with a bill of about N280 million for May instead of the less than N100 million they used to pay.

Due to the disagreement over the bill, for about ten days between June and July, electricity to the two health institutions was disconnected, leading to a protest by medical students who said the poor power supply could lead to their failure in their examinations.

CMUL Provost David Oke and Chief Medical Director (CMD) of LUTH Wasiu Adeyemo also pleaded for a review, noting that the public institutions cannot sustain the electricity bill.

Meanwhile, in his comments, the General Manager, Corporate Communications of EKEDC, Babatunde Lasaki, clarified that “Band A” isn’t enforced as perceived but determined by the feeder and location.

“Nobody can force a band on anybody. It is about your area and the feeder serving your area. If the feeder serving your area is giving you a 20-hour power supply and above, automatically, you guys fall under Band A,” Mr Lasakin explained.

Hike in electricity tariff

In April, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) announced a hike in electricity tariffs for Band A customers, noting that they are offered an average daily electricity supply of 20 hours, although many complain they do not get up to that.

NERC Vice Chairman Musiliu Oseni said the Band A consumers represent 15 per cent of the population but consume 40 per cent of the nation’s electricity.

He noted that the increase would not affect Bands B, C, D, and E while noting that the number of customers previously on Band A has been reduced.

READ ALSO: Electricity: University denies plan to ration power after students’ protest

Challenge posed by inflation

Speaking further on the financial administration of the university, the Vice-Chancellor noted that with inflation rates soaring in Nigeria, the biggest challenge is “maintaining quality education while keeping costs affordable for students.”

Mr Tayo said there is a significant increase in expenses- staff salaries, cost of feeding students and infrastructure maintenance, which he said are all affected by inflation.

He said: “Inflation diminishes the purchasing power of academia, posing an increasingly formidable challenge in upholding standards, especially in light of the significant surge resulting from the reclassification of customers in Band A for Electricity tariff by the authorities and the consequential burden of meeting exorbitant monthly electricity expenses.

“Despite this challenge, we are resolute not to lower our standards but rather raise the bar of education. This is our pledge to our stakeholders”.