Abuja, July 10, 2025 — The Nigerian Senate has taken decisive action to re-engineer the country’s struggling power sector by advancing the Electricity Act (Amendment) Bill, 2025 during its second reading on Tuesday.
Sponsored by Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe (Abia South) and backed by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, the bill introduces sweeping reforms aimed at preventing system collapse, clarifying regulatory responsibilities, and protecting infrastructure. Key measures include:
Criminalising vandalism of power assets: Offenders may face severe penalties, with some lawmakers even advocating for capital punishment to deter sabotage .
Clarifying regulatory roles: The bill settles ambiguities between the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and state regulators, ensuring smooth implementation amid new constitutional powers .
Reforming subsidy frameworks: It seeks to restructure the Power Consumer Assistance Fund to more precisely target vulnerable consumers .
Creating oversight bodies: Formal recognition is proposed for the Forum of Electricity Regulators and the National Electric Power Policy Council to improve coordination .
Senator Abaribe described the sector as “hanging on a cliff” under the burden of trillions of naira in debt and recurring sabotage . He emphasised the necessity of urgent legislative action to anchor reforms initiated by the Electricity Act 2023.
Senate President Akpabio praised the bill’s broad approach, stating, “we are not in the Senate to make money but to sacrifice for future generations” .
With the amendment advancing to the Senate Committee on Power for detailed review, scheduled within six weeks, the move is seen as a landmark legislative effort, compared by some to the transformational Petroleum Industry Act .
