The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has greenlit a dedicated compensation package for premium (Band A) electricity consumers who faced severe power outages and subpar supply between February and March 2026.
The regulatory body explained that this intervention was triggered by massive generation shortfalls across the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI). These shortages left electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) unable to deliver on their guaranteed service hours to premium feeders during that window.
According to NERC, the widespread blackouts were primarily driven by a lack of gas supply to generation companies, alongside the vandalism of critical gas and transmission infrastructure—events that fell outside the operational control of the DisCos.
The commission outlined these measures in an official statement, noting that the move aims to ease the burden of the blackouts on consumers while keeping faith in the nation’s power sector.
The compensation stems from intense load shedding experienced by Nigerians nationwide in early 2026, which followed a drastic drop in gas supplies to power plants.
The supply squeeze was caused by ballooning debts owed to gas producers, which forced deliveries down from an expected 1,629.75 million standard cubic feet (mmscf) per day to just 692.00 mmscf per day.
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This dropped available gas to less than 43 per cent of the volume needed for full-capacity power generation.
NERC specified that this payout initiative specifically targets the February–March 2026 window and applies to Band A feeders that managed an average daily supply of only 18 to 20 hours.
Feeders falling into this bracket will be handled via the standing compensation framework under Addendum No. NERC/2024/003, covering both Maximum Demand (MD) and Non-Maximum Demand (Non-MD) users.
Furthermore, the regulator clarified that the affected Band A lines would not face downgrades during this specific compensation timeline.
The compensation structure breaks down as follows:
Eligible Non-Maximum Demand customers are set to receive credits equal to 20 per cent of their feeder’s approved February 2026 energy cap.
Maximum Demand customers will get a credit equivalent to 20 per cent of the average energy billed per MD user back in February 2026.
Prepaid consumers will receive their payouts via electricity token credits, while postpaid users will see the adjustments applied directly to their monthly utility bills.
NERC mandated that all February 2026 compensations must have been wrapped up by May 31, 2026, whereas the compensation for March 2026 must be finalized no later than June 30, 2026.
The regulator explicitly barred DisCos from redirecting these credits to clear existing consumer debts, emphasizing that users must be clearly notified about the exact value and timeframe of the relief they are receiving.
“NERC remains committed to protecting electricity consumers while ensuring the stability and sustainability of the electricity market,” the commission stated.
The agency concluded by noting that it will actively track the rollout of this directive and audit DisCos to confirm that every eligible customer receives their due credit.
