The Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has made startling revelations that only 42% translating to 3,360 000 out of 8 million billed electricity Customers have meters in the country.
Nathan Shatti, NERC commissioner in charge of Finance and Management Services, disclosed this at the Monthly NEXIER Power dialogue for the month of April held in Abuja. The figure was a latest as of December 2017.
Speaking with BusinessDay on the sidelines of the NEXIER Power dialogue, the Commissioner said NERC’s effort to ensure proper billing of the electricity sector is to address concerns of liquidity issues threatening the sector, while ensuring a more efficient and transparency collection system and billing of electricity consumers.
The Commissioner noted that NERC came up with the idea of Meter Asset Provider regulation to ensure wider coverage of electricity consumers in the billing system, while removing the burden off the Discos who had also raised concern on lack of cost -reflective tariff to address the concerns of proper billing system.
”The enumeration of customer ensures Customer satisfaction, ensures proper billing, and to ensure transparency. We sat down and say a metering solution must be found to ensure Customer satisfaction and address concerns of liquidity in the sector,” He said.
He pointed out that the Distribution Company of Nigeria, DISCOS have been complaining of tariff shortfalls ,and other issues which informed the idea of getting an independent party to address the concerns of the shortfalls,and take over the responsibility of metering.
“We believe that by working with the Meter Asset Providers, issues bothering on estimated billing could be addressed adequately,and reducing it minimally is guaranteed.”
Apart from ensuring customer satisfaction,the proper billing system would ensure revenue assurance for the Disco, while enhancing revenue spread in the power value chains.
“Today,there are so many people using the energy that the Disco doesn’t know.Hence,if you are able to provide meters for those who don’t have,it creates healthier customer relationship with the Discos.”
The Commissioner also noted that the investors confidence would soar on the heels of improved customer enumeration and billing of energy consumers, which is a key factor in attracting competitive investors.
“What we are trying to do in the Meter Asset Provider which has taken off is to ensure competitive procurement process where to deploy meters that are accessible for customers.”he adds further.
It would be noted recalled that the NERC has came up with the Meter Asset Provider Regulations which which taken off effectively on Third of April 2018.
On the heels of this development, the Commissioner confirmed that NERC has already invited meter asset providers to participated in the procurement process, as he disclosed that more than 15 applications have been received by NERC on ‘no objection form’ which qualifies them to meet with the DISCOS and ascertain possible areas of coverage for the pre-paid meters.
On the other hand,the process to proscribe the issuance of estimated bills to consumers of electricity Distribution Companies(Discos) has begun in the federal House of representatives.
The bill which is a Private member bill is sponsored by Femi Gbajabiamila, the House of Representatives Majority Leader, and had already scaled second reading in the federal House of Representative.
The law makers in the bills which has passed second reading proposed to criminalise non-provision of pre-paid meter after application and illegal disconnection of consumers light among others.
Speaker Yakubu Dogara, contributing to the bill said,he had to disconnect his house in Bauchi that was not occupied but recieving N80 000 monthly on estimated bills.
In the same vein,Osita Chidoka a former Minister of Aviation told BusinessDay on the sidelines of the NEXIER Power event that he procured a transformer for his house in Obosi on his own, yet the Enugu Disco had failed to give him credit for that or provide him with meter,rather flood his house with estimated billing monthly,running into millions.
Industry watchers believe that proper billing of electricity Consumers and enumeration by DisCoS would enhance efficiency in the power sector and ensure maximum progress in the privatisation exercise.
