FACT CHECK: Did FG remove electricity subsidy as claimed by Peter Obi?

 

FACT CHECK: Did FG remove electricity subsidy as claimed by Peter Obi?

Peter Obi, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), has claimed that the federal government is no longer paying the electricity subsidy.

Speaking during an interview on Arise Television, Obi said the government had removed both petrol and electricity subsidies but “turned around to borrow more”.

“..We will begin to ensure that whatever we are doing will be transparent,” Obi said.

“This government came in, removed subsidy because they didn’t want to, they were borrowing to service it. Removed the subsidy in petroleum, subsidy in electricity, and that the resources they will save will be used in development, and they turned around the charge and borrowed more…”

VERIFICATION

According to data and recent reports, the electricity subsidy has not been fully removed.

Data from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) indicates that the federal government still incurs subsidy obligations in the power sector.

In its latest report, the commission said the government paid about N418.79 billion as electricity subsidy in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2025 due to non-cost-reflective tariffs.

Non-cost-reflective tariffs occur when electricity prices are set below the actual cost of generation, transmission, and distribution

This shows that electricity consumers are not yet paying the full cost of power, meaning the subsidy remains in place.

Recent developments suggest a gradual reduction, not elimination, of the subsidy.

Furthermore, reports indicate that the government is moving towards a cost-reflective tariff regime, which would eventually phase out the electricity subsidy, but the transition is still ongoing.

Moreover, since the current administration, the country has only removed the petrol subsidy.

Below is a subsidy trend under the current administration, according to NERC’s data, showing payments between Q3 2023 and Q4 2025.

Q3- 2023 – N204 billion

Q4 2023 – N256 billion

Q1 2024 – N536.40 billion

Q2 2024 – N380 billion

Q3 2024 – N464.12 billion

Q4 2024 – N471.69 billion

Q1 2025 – N536.40 billion

Q2 2025 –N514.35 billion

Q3 2025 – 458.75 billion

Q4 2025 – 418.79 billion

VERDICT

Obi’s claim is false.