The Rural Electrification Agency has confirmed a troubling paradox. Many rural communities now enjoy steady power from completed mini-grid projects but are paying tariffs that exceed those charged to Band A urban customers.
Abba Aliyu, the agency’s managing director, told Channels Television that in some areas tariffs are close to ₦250 and ₦280 per kWh.
Band A is the category reserved for customers who receive high-quality supply, typically 20 hours or more each day.
The banding system was intended to align reliability with cost. But the mini-grid model used in rural areas is capital intensive.
Solar panels, batteries and local distribution networks require large upfront investment, often spread across few customers and long distances. That pushes the per-unit cost up, even when supply is reliable.
The REA says the tariff model is flexible. Some locations pay less than Band A customers. Others must charge far more to recover infrastructure costs.
The agency also points to the strong willingness of rural dwellers to pay for dependable electricity and to recent efforts to interconnect mini-grids for universities and hospitals across Nigeria’s geopolitical zones.
That pragmatic case does not erase the policy dilemma. Many rural households are poorer and their consumption is lower than that of urban users. Asking them to pay a premium for steady power risks entrenching inequality.
If a reliable light and refrigeration come at a higher price in rural areas, electrification may become a burden rather than a benefit.
Policymakers need to act. Targeted subsidies could shield the poorest households without distorting incentives for investors. Blended finance and concessional capital would reduce the cost of deploying mini-grids.
Community ownership and cooperative models can lower operating costs and increase local buy-in.
Regulators should publish transparent tariff methodologies so communities can see how costs are apportioned and why particular prices are necessary.
The success of mini-grids in delivering dependable power is real and welcome. The concern is that success should not translate into injustice.
Nigeria must decide whether rural electrification will be a technical exercise in cost recovery, or a development policy that balances sustainability with fairness.
Without targeted intervention, the risk is that rural citizens pay more for what urban Band A customers receive more cheaply.
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