Nigeria’s state-level electricity regulators have firmly opposed the proposed Electricity Act (Amendment) Bill, 2025, warning that it could derail ongoing reforms, reintroduce unsustainable subsidies, and place unbearable financial pressure on both consumers and state governments.
In a strong statement issued by the Forum of Commissioners of Power and Energy in Nigeria (FOCPEN), the group called on the National Assembly to abandon the bill, arguing that it poses a significant threat to the power sector’s financial and regulatory stability.
The forum revealed that over N5 trillion in unpaid electricity subsidies is currently burdening the sector, undermining Nigeria’s efforts to build a self-sustaining energy market.
Signed by Prince Eka Williams, Commissioner for Power and Renewable Energy, Cross River State, and Barr. Omale Omale, Commissioner for Power, Renewable Energy and Transport, Benue State, the FOCPEN petition stressed that the bill could force states to relinquish regulatory autonomy they only recently secured through landmark reforms.
The commissioners further cautioned that reviving a subsidy-driven framework would only discourage private investment and create long-term instability in the electricity market.
“Pushing ahead with this bill would not only reverse hard-won progress but also deepen the crisis by reviving failed subsidy regimes and weakening state-level regulation,” the forum warned.
