Cold room and landlord operators on the Upper Lawsni Feeder in Benin City have petitioned Edo State authorities and the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) over what they describe as a 300% electricity tariff increase following their reported transfer from Band B to Band A.
In a petition drafted by their lawyer, Olayiwola Afolabi (SAN), the operators said the tariff per kilowatt-hour was set to rise from N68 to N209.50, warning that the increase is “shocking and financially unsustainable” for businesses already strained by wider economic pressures.
The group said the higher tariff is already compressing operating cycles. “Electricity units worth N50,000, which usually power our cold rooms for at least 10 days, now barely last for around three days,” the petition stated, adding that many operators could be forced into debt or closure if the classification stands.
Representatives of the operators, Gloria Ahanmise and Ehizogie Aiyevbomwan, said they had operated in the area for years and argued that consent should have been sought before any reclassification to a different service band. They urged state authorities to constitute a task force to review what they called arbitrary reclassification and to reassess the tariff regime.
BEDC, however, rejected the suggestion that customers can elect their tariff band. The company’s spokesperson, Evelyn Gbewen, said banding is determined by infrastructure and supply levels available to a given area, not by customer preference.
Nigeria’s tariff banding framework typically links Band A to higher committed hours of supply and higher tariffs, with NERC-approved tariff orders outlining service-level rules, including downgrades where minimum supply commitments are not met for sustained periods.
