*Federal Government has 40 percent shareholding, and has sourced sufficient funding to support DisCos through a low-interest shareholder loan to make it possible for DisCos to receive sufficient meters ─AEDC Chief

Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect

In order to enhance the acquisition and supply of prepayment electricity meters for consumers in the country, the Nigerian Government has provided funds to electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) for the countrywide rollout of prepayment metres.

Ernest Mupwaya, Managing Director of the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC), who revealed this Tuesday, November 3, at the flag off of the DisCo’s free mass metering scheme for its power consumers served by AEDC, stated the programme had been adequately equipped to meet consumers’ power needs.

The AEDC Managing Director said: “The Federal Government, who has 40 percent shareholding, has sourced sufficient funding to support DisCos through a low-interest shareholder loan that will make it possible for Discos to receive sufficient meters to close the metering gap for good.”

Hitherto, it was learnt that the top executives of DisCos held talks with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Tuesday, after which the disbursement of funds for metering purpose began.

Mupwaya stated: “Currently, with the ‘flag-off’ of this national free mass metre programme, AEDC will receive a total of 900,000 meters, at the cost of N23bn, which will be sufficient to meter all customers including replacement of defective meters.”

According to him, the DisCo hopes to install metres in excess of 101,000, valued at N6 billion, between now and December at no cost to power consumers.

It will then deploy the remainder within a year and a half concurrently in Kogi, Niger and Nasarawa States as well as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

He noted that the large-scale metering would provide installation and inspection jobs, enhance revenue growth, and foster openness in electricity transactions in Nigeria.