7 December 2011, Sweetcrude, LAGOS – Mr Chris Akamnonu, Chief Executive Officer of Ikeja PHCN Distribution Zone, says the zone requires over N820 million to replace about 14 faulty panels in the zone, the News Agency of Nigeria reports.
Akamnonu made this known on Wednesday in Lagos when members of the House Committee on Power visited the zone in Lagos.
He said underfunding by government was one of the major challenges confronting electricity distribution in the zone.
Akamnonu said some of the panels and outstation equipment like the 33KV and 11 KV switch gears as well as the conductors were obsolete.
He said that there were also constraints of power evacuation in about 14 injection substations due to unserviceable panels, adding that 25.5 per cent of installed facilities were faulty.
“The zone requires about N820 million to replace all faulty panels and obsolete equipment.
“Government needs to urgently intervene through funding to put the zone in better shape, while preponderance of undersized conductor is still a major challenge,’’ he said.
The PHCN officer said that the zone required N12 billion to achieve effective metering of customers on pre-paid meter, adding that metering to about 389,126 customers was being vigorously pursued.
He said that tampering of meters by customers had been checked, while revenue from customers on prepaid meters exceeded revenue from customers with credit meters.
Akamnonu said the budgetary allocations to the zone from 2009 were low, stressing that only N331.86 million had been released out of the N567. 86 million appropriated to the zone this year.
He said that the zone would commence its unique customer care initiative, called “IKEJACARE’’, by 2012, saying it was another way of interfacing with customers.
Akamnonu said the zone would focus more on re-engineering of existing metering and revenue protection, while ICT-driven customer-care facilities would be made fully operational.
“Tariff reclassification and energy audit will be top priority in investment consideration.
“Commercial efficiency and profitability will continue to receive desired attention so that derivable benefits will continue to accrue,’’ he said.
