The Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company, on Wednesday, has said that it has issued prepaid meters to its Maximum Demand customers as directed by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission.
According to a statement released by NERC, earlier in the week, maximum demand electricity customers are those connected to the 11KV lines and are mostly with their dedicated transformers.
The IBEDC, whose franchise area spans Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Kwara as well as parts of Ekiti, Niger and Kogi states, clarified that the NERC directive that consumers without prepaid meters should stop paying estimated bills was only applicable to MD consumers.
It said, “The commission (as found on the NERC website) states that MD customers that are unmetered should henceforth not pay any bill presented in the form of estimated bills and must not be disconnected as well.
“As one of the eleven Discos in Nigeria, IBEDC has two categories of customers namely MD customers and Non-MD (residential customers). MD customers are commercial and industrial customers who consume high levels of electricity and contribute substantially to the revenues of distribution companies.
Residential customers, on the other hand, are those using electricity exclusively for residential purposes and are on public transformers.
IBEDC said to ensure a clear understanding, the NERC directive was a culmination of an earlier agreement reached with all Discos in June 2016 to meter all MD customers before November 30, 2016.
The date was later extended to March 1, 2017, it said, adding, “IBEDC has since complied with the directive by metering all our identified MD customers.”
The company said the metering process for its residential customers within the IBEDC coverage area was ongoing.
It said, “Despite the attendant challenges, we are metering intensively, as the plan is to meter over 120,000 customers in 2017.
“We remain resolute in our commitment to continue to deliver the best service and power to our esteemed customers. We implore our unmetered customers to continue to pay their estimated bills until we meter them. Estimated bills are generated using the cluster average methodology as regulated by NERC.”
Source: ( Punch Newspaper )
