The University of Lagos has been left in darkness after Eko Electricity Distribution Company disconnected its power supply over unpaid electricity bills amounting to N300 million.
The university management revealed this development in a statement on Wednesday, explaining that the institution has been struggling with the increasing cost of electricity.
The situation worsened after EKEDC upgraded UNILAG’s tariff category from “Band B” to “Band A,” leading to a significant rise in monthly electricity bills. Before this upgrade, the university paid between N150 million and N180 million monthly. However, the bill for June under the new “Band A” tariff nearly doubled, reaching almost N300 million, which has been challenging for the university to handle.
The management expressed regret over the blackout that has affected the campus since Tuesday. Despite ongoing discussions with EKEDC and a recent payment of N180 million on August 20, the university’s power was disconnected on August 27 without prior notice.
In the statement, the management said, “Just two weeks after our meeting, we were hit with a staggering bill of nearly half a billion naira (N472 million) for July, further increasing our debt burden! We kept our promise and paid N180 million on August 20, yet on August 27, EKEDC disconnected us without notice and has refused to reconnect the university to the national grid.”
The university management assured the community that efforts are being made to resolve the issue with EKEDC. They called for calm and announced that power supply across the campus would be rationed until further notice.
