24 January 2013, Sweetcrude, ABuja – Dr Sam Amadi, chairman of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, has announced that electricity consumers in the country are now to pay for meters, contrary to earlier information indicating that meters would be supplied to consumers free of charge.
He advised customers to pay to Distribution Companies, DISCOs, following which they will be given meters in 45 days.
Under the new arrangement, Amadi said that, in exchange for the payment, DISCOs will reduce the customers’ electricity bills monthly to the tune of the amount originally advanced by the customer.
He said the Commission may accredit meter vendors to supply and install the meters directly to customers, adding that NERC will work out the modalities for the payment.
This decision followed the companies’ slow implementation of the 18-month timeline for metering deployment plan set by NERC at the commencement of the Multi Year Tariff Order, MYTO2, in June, last year.
The tariff made allowance for sufficient funds to provide meters so that customers were no longer required to pay for the facility.
Amadi, however, disclosed that the 18-month metering plan was based on the assumption that with financial viability, the process would improve after MYTO 2.
