In recent months, millions of Nigerians have grappled with electricity challenges, as the country witnessed power interruptions largely linked to a shortage of gas supply to power generation companies.
This year, Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, has experienced at least two major national grid collapses, the first on January 23, and the second four days later, plunging a population of over 200 million people into darkness.
But this pattern of gas shortages to power plants and recurring grid collapses is not new.
In 2024, reports showed that the country’s national grid collapsed up to 12 times, averaging one collapse each month. The trend continued in 2025, with several collapses also recorded.
Attempts to address Nigeria’s deteriorating and inefficient electricity sector led the Senate in 2022 to remove power generation, transmission, and distribution from the Exclusive Legislative List to the Concurrent List.
This created the legal framework, through the Electricity Act signed by President Bola Tinubu in June 2023, that now empowers states across the country to make laws regulating electricity.
However, nearly three years after the bill was signed into law, only 15 states, out of 36, including the Federal Capital Territory, have transitioned to regulating their own electricity markets, according to a new update by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, established under the Electricity Act 2023.
Here are the states and when they adopted their State Electricity Regulators (SERs):
Enugu was one of the pioneers in transitioning to State Electricity Regulators (SERs).
On October 22, 2024, the South-East state took full regulatory oversight of its electricity market from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission. The power to regulate, generate, and transmit electricity in the state was vested in the newly formed Enugu State Electricity Regulatory Commission.
To lay the foundation for regulating the electricity sector in the state, Peter Mbah, Governor of Enugu, signed the state electricity bill into law on September 8, 2023.
To establish the legal framework that would empower Ekiti State to regulate its own power sector, Governor Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji signed the Ekiti State Electric Power Sector Law, 2023 (Law No. 11 of 2023), on October 16, 2023.
The law enabled the state to generate, transmit, and distribute electricity independently, in alignment with the federal Electricity Act of 2023.
In March of the following year, the South-West state established the State Electricity Regulatory Bureau (SERB) as the apex regulator of electricity matters, ensuring standards across various market segments. It became the first state in the geopolitical region to do so.
On October 22, 2024, just like Enugu State, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission relinquished its regulatory oversight to the state.
Following suit in establishing its own state electricity regulatory body was Ondo, which, on October 23, 2024, transitioned the responsibility for overseeing the generation, transmission, and distribution of power within the state to the Ondo State Electricity Regulatory Bureau (OSERB).
However, Ondo had been one of the early movers in decentralising Nigeria’s electricity sector, having passed its state power law in 2020 and established OSERB in 2021.
Recently, the government granted power generation and distribution licences to Ore Power Limited and ASB Valiant Electricity Limited in a bid to improve electricity supply in the state.
Imo State, another South-East state, joined the group of states regulating their power sector on December 31, 2024.
The bill that empowered the state to take charge of its electricity market was signed into law by Hope Uzodimma, Governor of Imo, in May 2024. This paved the way for the establishment of the Imo State Electricity Regulatory Commission (ISERC), the independent regulatory authority created under the Imo State Electricity Reforms Law 2024.
Oyo State transitioned to regulating its electricity market on February 5, 2025, following earlier groundwork laid in 2024 when the state received regulatory oversight approval from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
The legal foundation was established through the Oyo State Electricity Law, which enabled the creation of the Oyo State Electricity Regulatory Commission (OSERC), tasked with licensing and regulating intrastate electricity operations.
In terms of investment, the state has focused on restructuring distribution through the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC), which created a subsidiary to operate within the state under OSERC’s supervision. This is expected to unlock embedded generation and improve supply reliability across industrial clusters in Ibadan and surrounding areas.
Edo State formally assumed regulatory control of its electricity market on February 20, 2025, after receiving early transition approval as far back as August 2024.
The Edo State Electricity Law established the Edo State Electricity Regulatory Commission (ESERC), empowering the state to oversee generation, distribution, and licensing.
The state has been positioning itself as a power investment hub, with a focus on modular and off-grid solutions. Its collaboration with private sector operators, particularly through Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC), is aimed at strengthening last-mile distribution and attracting independent power producers into the state’s electricity ecosystem.
Kogi State transitioned on March 12, 2025, building on its earlier regulatory transfer in September 2024.
The Kogi State Electricity Regulatory Commission (KSERC) was established following the passage of the state’s electricity law, giving it authority over intrastate electricity markets.
Kogi’s strategy has leaned toward leveraging its geographic position within the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) network. The state is working with AEDC’s sub-company structure to improve electricity distribution and expand access to underserved communities, particularly in rural areas.
In December 2024, NERC announced the transfer of regulatory oversight of the electricity market in Lagos State to the newly established Lagos State Electricity Regulatory Commission (LASERC).
