The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has released the final ransfer of Regulatory Authority Order to the Abia State Electricity Regulatory Authority (ASERA) , empowering ASERA to be the statutory regulator for electricity sector activities in Abia state
The Chairman and CEO of the Abia State Electricity Regulatory Authority (ASERA), Mr Emeka Onyegbule, who disclosed this on Wednesday, at Government House Umuahia, during a press conference, said the authority to regulate the electricity market in Abia state takes effect on December 24th 2025.
He recalled that the Constitution was amended in 2023 to enable the states to do generation, distribution, and transmission of electricity.
Mr. Onyegbule said that, following the enactment of the law and the birth of the state’s electricity markets, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission in Abuja gave an interim order permitting the states to go ahead and begin the establishment of the regulatory institution.
“That order from NERC came out on the 24th of June, 2025 and it had a time frame of six months for that transition to happen.
“That transition entails putting in the necessary structures in place, appointing the board, and equipping them to do the work which NERC has been doing.
“So today is a very significant milestone in the life of the ASERA as we have completed the six-month transition as of yesterday.
“So effectively from today, the responsibility and the mandate to regulate oversight and manage the Abia state’s electricity markets falls on ASERA and no longer NERC,.
“With this transfer, all activities within the electricity value-chain, including generation, transmission, distribution and trading fall under the direct oversight and regulation of the Authority effect from the date of the Transfer Order”, Onyegbule stated.
Mr. Onyegbule said that the development has a lot of significance and impact on the electricity market ASERA is going to be administering
“And like I said, it has some very profound impact on what the market stands to benefit. First of all, we expect that by the creation of ASERA, you bring regulation home to customers.
“They don’t need to wait for NERC anymore to have their complaints resolved. We also think that the coming of the regulatory authority in the state will give the consumer a louder voice to be heard and also to be treated rightly.
“And that is what ASERA stands to achieve in terms of ensuring that there is a balance between regulation and customer delivery,” Onyegbule explained.
Also speaking, the Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu, said that the enactment of the Electricity Act of 2025 by the Abia state government made it possible for the progress achieved in the electricity sub sector.
“The state has formally enacted its own law, the Electricity Law 2025.
And as a result of that law, the government has gone ahead to set up the Abia State Electricity Regulatory Authority ASERA.
“A body that is burdened with independent statutory regulation of the Abia electricity market.
“So in view of these developments, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), has issued an interim transfer order authorizing ASERA to exercise regulatory oversight over the Abia electricity market” Prince Kanu stated.
He noted that it is an important development that has imposed one of the signature achievements of the present administration in Abia’s electricity ecosystem.
Contributing, the Commissioner for Power and Public Utilities, Mr Ikechukwu Monday, said that the establishment of the State’s Electricity market remains critical to achieving the Abia 25-Year Development Plan and accelerating industrialisation.
While recalling that the journey to operationalising the electricity market began on March 17, 2025, following Governor Alex Otti’s assent to the Abia State Electricity Law, Engr. Monday said that electricity remains central to economic growth, investment attraction and improved service delivery to consumers across Abia state, adding that the new electricity market had been designed to be world-class, investor-friendly and consumer-focused.
He informed further that ASERA has been empowered to issue metering and billing licenses to encourage private investment in meter deployment, noting that the improved metering would ensure fairness by allowing consumers to pay only for electricity consumed.
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