The Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) says it would soon provide four million prepaid meters to electricity consumers in the country.
Aisha Mahmud, the Commissioner in charge of Consumers Affairs in the Commission, disclosed this at the Customer’s Complaints Resolution Meeting Organised on Tuesday in Jos.
Mahmud, who described the shortage of metres in the country as one of the biggest problems currently facing the commission, however said that the challenge would soon be a thing of the past.
She said that modalities have been put in place to provide the metres through the National Mass Metering Programme (NMP) of the Federal Government.
”Actually metering is one of the biggest challenges that we have been facing in the last couple of years in the commission.
”Honestly, for me i don’t think this is funny giving that so much investment have been made in the power sector.
”It is said that in Nigeria electricity generation started in Lagos as far back as 1826 with 20 megawatts, and 126 years down the line we are still talking about basic things as metering; we should have passed this state a long time ago
”However, asside many interventions in that regard, including the zero face of the NMP where over one million metres were provided, the first face of the initiative will make available four million metres to customers,”she decried
Mahmud, who said all preparation has been concluded for the mass metering programme, said that funding for the project would come through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)
”We shall make available these metres to customers through the distribution companies and this is to show that the regulator is not just sitting but making efforts to see that all Nigerians have to access to metres.
”So, we shall do all it takes as regulators to ensure that the issue of metering become a thing of the past and I strongly believe that with the plans ahead, we will overcome this challenge soon,”she said.
Mahmud also attributed the increasing rate of electricity tariff to inflation, rising excahnge rate, cost of gas, labour generation, and other economic realities in the country.
”Inflation has gone up to double digit, exchange rate, even the official rate is crazy, operators purchase most of their equipment abroad using the current exchange rate, the cost or labour keeps increasing, among other factors,”she explained.
On the meeting with customers, Mahmud said the commission was in Jos to educate customers on their rights and listen to their complaints with a view of addressing them on the spot.
Also speaking, Engr Abdu Mohammed, the Managing Director, Jos Electricity Distribution Plc (JED), said that the concerns raised by the customers at the meeting would be addressed immediately.
”Quite a lot of issues ranging from metering, billing, power quality, complaints about our staff, among others were raised.
”I want to promise that all these issues will be addressed immediately and interms of metering, we are very much on track.
”Few days back, we purchase 12,000 meters and they are currently in our store and we are expecting 305,000 metres in the forthcoming NMP face-one and the over 100,000 from the World Bank Intervention
”So, very soon you will see traction in all pur franchise states and all our customers will be metered,” Mohammed said.
