Students may pay N80,000 electricity fee in varsities – VCs’ panel

The Committee of Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities has said university students may likely be charged N80,000 or more to cover the high electricity tariffs

Secretary-General, CVCNU, Prof Yakubu Ochefu, in an interview with Punch correspondent, said universities could not afford the over N200m they were being charged monthly for electricity.

They were charged N61m monthly before the introduction of the Band A system following the hike in electricity tariff.

In April 2024, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission announced an increase in electricity tariff paid by Band A customers from N68/KWh to N225/KWh, which was a 300 per cent increment.

Band A customers are those who enjoy electricity supply for at least 20 hours per day.

Many universities have cried out over soaring electricity bill following the new policy.

For instance, Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria, Kaduna State, and the University of Benin lamented receiving N3.6bn electricity bills, averaging N300m monthly under the Band A tariff.

Also, VC, UNIBEN, Prof Lilian Salami, said the university had been disconnected from the national grid because it could not afford to pay about N300m monthly for electricity.

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