Kunle Kalejaye 15 February 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos – The Benin Electricity Distribution Plc, BEDC, has revealed plans to embark on massive metering of its customers in Edo, Ondo, Delta and Ekiti States, assuring of its determination to provide quality service delivery.
The Head, BEDC, Delta State, Mr Ernest Edgar, gave this assurance in Warri during BEDC customers public forum.
He said that in spite of the challenges faced by the BEDC, it would make sure that customers got needed quality service, urging customers to pay their bills and avoid all forms of illegal deals with some corrupt BEDC workers.
He lamented the high rate of theft of BEDC equipments by vandals who have made it very difficult for the company to perform maximally.
Mr. Edgar, while responding to questions from the audience, explained that the reason why there was shortage of power in the country was because of many factors, including gas pipeline vandalism that has made gas scarce.
He also explained that the Nigerian Electric Regulatory Commission, NERC, has directed all power distribution companies to stop collecting money from customers who want to buy meter, adding that henceforth, meters would be given to customers for free.
He said the distribution of the meters have already started and that BEDC would distribute meters to all its customers within three to four years as they could not provide meters to all customers within one year.
He said BEDC would make sure that the meters got to all customers but called for patient on the part of customers as, according to him, BEDC did not have the funds to provide meters for everybody at the same time.
According to him, the metering will be done in batches and that by the end of five years, every house would have been metered.