I am a regulatory counsel nestled somewhere between the high-and-low voltage value chain and I have chosen to manage this blog under the pseudonym Gigawatt Lawyer.  

I joined the NESI sometime in 2014, a few months after the privatization of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (“PHCN”) which was consummated on 11 November 2013, when President Goodluck Jonathan handed over the subsidiary companies that made up PHCN to the new core investors. Since then, it has been a roller coaster ride and there were moments in the previous years when I wondered whether the privatisation of the industry had not been rushed by the Jonathan administration.

The bulk of the articles uploaded on this blog are from my work journal of the past eight years of participation in an interesting, but rather challenging industry. The articles were originally written as my broodings and musings, with many stray thoughts about my colleagues and bosses at my workplace, and as such, were never intended for publication in the first place. However, I decided to share these work musings with the public when I realised that there were many contentious issues and misconceptions about the regulatory framework of the industry, especially regarding the most important member of the value chain; the Distribution Companies (“DisCos”).

In the course of writing and sharing my opinions about industry matters with you, I shall attempt to maintain the stance of a neutral commentator. Although I am a part of the industry, I am also an electricity consumer who purchases energy at the stipulated tariffs, and notably, without any subventions. In other words, I am on both sides of the fence so I can afford to be neutral.

The founder of the Legal Publishing firm, D.S.C. Publications, and its Editor in Chief, Deji Sasegbon SAN (of blessed memory), remains one of my favourite legal writers in Nigeria. His question-and-answer format approach to the compilation of the Companies and Allied Matters Law and Practice (“CAMA”) made life easier for me while I was in corporate practice. When I thought of starting this blog, I remembered the learned Silk and I was thereafter convinced that a question and answer format would provide a more personal experience to the reader and bring a conversational tone to the contents.

I have and will continue to strive to keep the language of the blog concise, simple, and devoid of jargon, as its purpose is to engage public discourse on the NESI and how developments therein affect the electricity consumer. It is not a journal for lawyers and other professional stakeholders of the industry who, in my presumption, need no guidance on the petty issues that I shall be writing about. Accordingly, academic writing and citations will be kept to a minimum. Additionally, the blog shall be periodically updated with necessary changes due to legal and regulatory, market, or practice developments for the NESI always appears to be in a state of flux.

I am grateful that you stopped by my small portion of cyberspace.

Many thanks.

Gigawatt Lawyer