*NERC postpones hearing, describes suit as against public interest
OpeOluwani Akintayo
Benin — The Benin Electricity Distribution Company, BEDC has filed a lawsuit against the Nigerian Electricity Distribution Company, NERC, and Asaba Distribution Limited, ADL at the federal high court, Abuja over a distribution license.
Findings showed that the suit was filed following issuance of an Independent Electricity Distribution Network, IEDN license by the Commission to ADL.
The matter which was earlier reported to NERC by BEDC was earlier scheduled to be heard today, however, SweetcrudeReports gathered that the utility firm later refilled the case with suit no: FHC/ABJ/CS/36/2021) on 15 January 2021 against the Commission and ADL at the federal high court upon sensing that NERC would judge the case in favour of ADL.
As a result, NERC said it has postponed the public hearing of the case “indefinitely”, describing the move by BEDC as “premature and has been instituted in bad faith against the overall public interest as all administrative remedies available to the parties have not been exhausted.”
The suit among others seeks an order of perpetual injunction restraining the Commission from granting an IEDN license to ADL to operate within BEDC’s electricity distribution area.
BEDC argued that has the capacity to and has in fact been supplying adequate and sufficient electricity that meets the demand of the Delta State Government for whom the IEDN license is purported as being procured for within the BEDC electricity distribution area, including the designated area.
“The court processes were served to the Commission on 18 January 2021 and arrangements have been made for the defense of the suit”, NERC said in a response note to SweetcrudeReports.
