PenCom, NERC collaborate to enforce pension compliance by GENCOs, DISCOs

Barbara Bako, Abuja.

The National Pension Commission (PenCom) is working with the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to persuade electricity Generation Companies (GenCos) and Distribution Companies (DisCos) to remit outstanding pension contributions for their employees.

The agreement happened during a courtesy visit to NERC headquarters in Abuja, by PenCom’s Director General, Ms. Omolola Oloworaran who led a delegation to seek NERC’s intervention in addressing the non-compliance by 16 electricity companies.

These firms have failed to remit billions of naira in pension contributions and associated penalties, despite multiple warnings and enforcement attempts and even an ordered out of court settlement.

Ms. Oloworaran urged NERC to reinforce compliance with the Pension Reform Act 2014 (PRA 2014) by making the presentation of a valid Pension Clearance Certificate issued by PenCom a mandatory requirement for licensing and other regulatory approvals granted to power companies.

She emphasised that as the regulator of the electricity sector, NERC has a critical role in ensuring that private entities under its jurisdiction—including GENCOs and DISCOs—fulfil their statutory obligation to deduct and remit monthly pension contributions for their employees to their Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs).

Recovery Agents have been employed by PenCom in order to establish and recover pension contributions that were still unpaid across the private sector.

Oloworaran, on the other hand, voiced her concern with the fact that a number of electricity firms have continued to disregard their commitments, even after these Recovery Agents confirmed their liabilities.

In response, NERC Chairman, Egr. Sanusi Garba, assured PenCom of the Commission’s readiness to collaborate in enforcing pension compliance.

He stressed the need for a thorough reconciliation of all outstanding liabilities and pledged NERC’s support in finding a sustainable resolution to the issue.

To enable continuous collaboration, PenCom and NERC established a joint working group tasked with addressing the pension compliance concerns in the electricity sector.