10 February 2015, Abuja – Benin Electricity Distribution Company, BEDC, has blamed the Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, for the poor electricity supply currently witnessed in Edo, Delta, Ondo and Ekiti states.
BEDC, in a statement by Mrs. Kunbi Labiyi, Chief Corporate Service Officer, said the epileptic power situation is due to the shortfall of about 640 megawatts, MW, of electricity it had to grapple with, stating that out of the 900 MW of electricity it required the TCN is only allocating 240 MW to it.
According to her, this under-supply is responsible for the load shedding among customers in the four states.
She said, “Presently, BEDC receives 240MW from the national grid to cover Edo, Delta, Ondo and Ekiti states, which is far lower than what the four states need.
“BEDC currently has capacity to take three times the power provided. Edo State enjoys 44 per cent of the amount received presently, while 56 per cent is shared by Ekiti, Ondo and Delta states.
“In Edo State, several locations receive between 10 hours and 23 hours power supply, with the least availability being six hours. This is far higher than the average in most states in the country. We are not in a position to increase this as this will further marginalise the other three states.
Labiyi added that some demonstrators who besieged the company understood the challenge when these facts were presented to them, adding that the demonstrators realised that there was no basis for their demonstration.
The statement titled: ‘Report on Demonstration to Benin Disco Office,’ read: “At around 9.30am on Monday, there was demonstration from persons who claimed to be residents from areas behind Ogbe Stadium (Benin City) under Etete environs.
“Their complaint was hinged on the 12 hourly load shedding arrangement currently being enjoyed by their area. This implies that they are not happy that they are getting 12 hours power supply daily.
“The Load shedding arrangement is a result of inadequate power supply and was further occasioned by the reduction in generation leading to a drop in the allocation from TCN to BEDC.”
“After due consultation with the representatives they understood the challenge and realised there was no basis for their demonstration, because the electricity supply to their area is amongst the best in Edo State.”
– Vanguard
