The persistent power outage that the business city of Kano, is experiencing in the recent times, has triggered a deep confrontation between the management of the Kano Electricity Distribution Plc (KEDCO), and the members of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), in the state.
The members of the association, had stated during the recent visit of the officials the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) and the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) to the Challawa industrial cluster in state, that the biggest challenge they are grappling with was KEDCO `s inefficiency in supplying electricity to the cluster.
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Speaking through Aliyu Mahadi, who is the secretary of the Challawa chapter of the association, the body recounted that it has being recording huge financial losses, in the recent times, as result of the poor electricity supply to the cluster.
This claim by the association seems not to have gone down well with the management of the company, as it has responded in a statement issued by it Head of Corporate Communication, Sani Bala Sani, expressing its dismay over the claims, labelling them as misleading and inaccurate.
The company, categorically denied the accusations noting that account of its daily electricity dispatch to it feeders in the Challawa Industrial Area, including the 33kV Coca Cola, 11kV Ceramic, and 11kV NBC, all classified as Band A, it has consistently delivered an average of 23 hours and 45 minutes of electricity supply.
The company maintains that these records contradict the manufacturers claim that it they are receiving Band C-level services despite operating under Band A classification.
The company clarified that its operations are subject to rigorous oversight from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
“NERC closely monitors and assesses our service level compliance. If what MAN is saying through Mahadi are valid, these feeders would have been downgraded as part of the service contract agreements.
“Our ultimate goal is to power every home and business within our franchise area. As part of our industrialization and economic empowerment vision, we continue to prioritize reliable electricity for key manufacturing zones,” the company stated.
The company emphasized its strategic priority of ensuring stable power supply to social service providers and industrial clusters like Challawa.
Beyond maintaining consistent supply, KEDCO also being making efforts overtime, to mitigate the impact of rising energy costs on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs, the statement said.
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“Over the past 12 months, we have taken deliberate steps to cushion energy costs for SMEs, recognizing their vital role in local economic growth. By providing manufacturers with power at competitive rates below market costs, we are fostering an enabling environment for innovation and job creation.
“In light of the controversy, we urged customers and stakeholders to verify facts before making public statements that could damage its reputation. We remain committed to service improvement, investing in network expansion and upgrades to enhance reliability and efficiency,” the statement concluded.
The ongoing disagreement between Manufacturers in Kano, and KEDCO underscores the broader debate over power distribution in the state, as electricity consumers across Nigeria intensified they demanding for steady supply of the commodity.
