On August 18, 2026, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) issued an order transferring regulatory oversight of Akwa Ibom State’s intrastate electricity market to the newly formed Akwa Ibom State Electricity Regulatory Commission (AKSERC), the latest handover in Nigeria’s accelerating shift to state-level power regulation under the Electricity Act 2023.
The order directs Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Plc to incorporate a dedicated subsidiary, PHED SubCo, to take over electricity supply and distribution within the state, with 60 days allowed for incorporation and a full transfer deadline of February 17, 2027. NERC retains federal oversight of inter-state and international generation, transmission, trading and system operation.
AKSERC’s five-member board, inaugurated by Governor Umo Eno in June 2026 under chairman Arit Uya, has 18 months to overhaul the state’s electricity sector. Akwa Ibom has also incorporated Ibom Electricity Holding Limited to manage state electricity assets and begun regularising its shareholding in PHEDC and the 4Power Consortium, steps toward a dedicated state distribution company.
NERC said 16 states had fully moved to state electricity regulation as of July 2026. What was, until the Electricity Act 2023, a single national regime is now 16 separate ones, with more states expected to follow.
Why this matters
A faster-moving, more local regulatory map
Each state transfer changes who a developer answers to on tariffs, licensing and dispute resolution within that state, and with 16 states now regulating their own markets, tracking each commission’s rulebook and appetite for private participation is becoming as important as tracking NERC’s.
State-level regulation, done well, tends to move faster on the embedded power, captive generation and eligible-customer arrangements that underpin independent power platforms, since state commissions sit closer to the industrial and commercial consumers that structure those deals. The states furthest along, Akwa Ibom among them, are the ones to watch for where the next wave of state-backed private power activity lands.