KERC Finds KEDL Guilty Of Illegal Power Tapping, Negligence

The Kogi State Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) has found the Kogi Electricity Distribution Limited (KEDL) guilty of unauthorised electricity tapping, professional negligence and violation of consumer protection regulations in its dealings with Karomsi Garden Hotels Limited, Lokoja.

The Commission, in a resolution dated August 11, 2026, ordered KEDL to reconnect the hotel, recalculate its electricity bills and replace its allegedly recovered meter with a brand-new meter at no cost to the customer.

KERC also directed the electricity distribution company to rectify identified technical faults and investigate some of its personnel allegedly implicated in electricity theft-related activities.

The decision followed a petition filed by Karomsi Garden Hotels Limited through its counsel, A.S. Akpala & Co., dated May 4, 2026, over alleged illegal tapping of its dedicated electricity line, faulty transformer installation, arbitrary billing and unlawful disconnection.
In its ruling, the KERC Forum held that a KEDL staff member, identified as Mohammed, engaged in unauthorised tapping of the hotel’s dedicated line, contrary to Section 106(1)(o) of the Kogi State Electricity Law 2024.

The Forum further held that KEDL violated Sections 20, 24 and 25 of the KERC Customer Protection Regulations (CPR) 2025 by disconnecting the hotel’s premises on April 27, 2026, at about 8:15pm without prior notice, despite the fact that complaints relating to the dispute were still unresolved.

On the technical issues raised by the petitioner, KERC found KEDL professionally negligent in the installation of the hotel’s transformer, citing a faulty neutral line and improper earthing, which resulted in low voltage and damage to electrical appliances.

The Commission also took exception to the hotel’s electricity billing pattern, noting a significant and unexplained increase in its monthly bill from an average of about N697,220 to approximately N3 million.

It held that the billing practice contravened Section 28(3) of the CPR 2025, which prohibits the artificial inflation of estimated electricity bills.

Consequently, KERC ordered KEDL to recalculate and issue fresh electricity bills to the hotel covering the period from January 2025 to March 2026.

The Commission directed that the recalculated bills be issued within 14 days.

It also ordered KEDL to reconnect the hotel within seven days and replace the “recovered” meter with a new one at no cost to the customer.

The distribution company was further directed to rectify all identified technical faults, particularly those relating to the neutral line and earthing.

KERC ordered the investigation of Mohammed, Engineer Oke and other implicated KEDL personnel and their referral to the Kogi State Special Task Force on Electricity Theft, where appropriate.
The Commission also directed KEDL to submit a compliance report on the implementation of the orders within 30 days.

However, the KERC Forum dismissed the hotel’s N50 million claim for damages, holding that it lacked jurisdiction to award such monetary compensation under Section 45(2) of the CPR 2025.

It advised the petitioner to seek monetary compensation through an appeal to the Commission.

Hotel Alleges Prolonged Hardship
In its petition, Karomsi Garden Hotels Limited alleged that it had been subjected to what it described as “unprecedented torment” by KEDL, which it said had adversely affected its business operations.

The hotel alleged that in November 2025, an individual, allegedly with the assistance of a KEDL staff member, Mohammed, illegally tapped its dedicated transformer line to supply electricity to a chicken feed factory.

It further alleged that KEDL officials subsequently burnt its electricity meter and replaced it with a “recovered” meter after collecting N500,000

The hotel said that after purchasing a new transformer for N6.2 million in December 2025, it continued to experience low voltage, which allegedly resulted in damage to nine air conditioners.

Karomsi also complained about what it described as arbitrary billing, saying its monthly electricity bill rose from about N600,000 to N2.8 million within a short period despite low patronage and without any corresponding tariff increase.

KEDL, through Engineers Oke and Aduku, reportedly admitted that Mohammed carried out the unauthorised tapping but denied allegations that the company burnt the meter or maliciously disconnected the hotel.

Meanwhile, Karomsi Garden Hotels Limited said that, as of the time of filing this report, KEDL was yet to comply with the KERC Forum’s resolution.

The hotel said the alleged non-compliance had continued to subject it to severe hardship in the day-to-day running of its business.
Speaking on the development, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Karomsi Garden Hotels Limited, Prince Sunday Inah, appealed to KERC to compel KEDL to strictly comply with the Commission’s directives.

Inah commended the management of KERC for what he described as transparency, accountability and prompt resolution of disputes between electricity consumers and service providers in the state.

He also commended the Kogi State Government for establishing the regulatory commission, saying its intervention had provided an avenue for electricity consumers to seek redress over disputes with service providers.

The case has further highlighted the growing importance of effective consumer protection, regulatory oversight and accountability in Kogi State’s electricity sector, particularly as businesses continue to seek relief from disputes over metering, billing, service quality and disconnection.