Mkpoikana Udoma
Port Harcourt — The Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company Plc, PHED, has announced plans to install over 135,000 meters across its franchise areas as part of efforts to deepen transparency, improve revenue collection, and strengthen customer trust.
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of PHED, Mr. Ete Pinnick, disclosed this recently during the PHED/NERC Customer Enlightenment and Complaint Resolution Meeting in Port Harcourt, themed “We Learn Together, We Grow Together.”
According to Pinnick, the initiative aligns with the company’s drive for “cultural transformation” aimed at improving customer relations and promoting accountability in energy consumption.
“Our metering percentage today is about 60 percent. Right now, we have 85,000 meters we’re installing, and by the end of that programme, we should reach about 135,000,” Pinnick stated.
“We have the Meter Acquisition Fund, MAF, Phase Two, with 16,000 meters allocated to our region, and the MAP programme running concurrently. If it were up to me, we would not have any postpaid customers,” he added.
The PHED boss assured that the company is prioritizing its Maximum Demand customers, noting that by year-end, all will be fully metered. He said this is part of the firm’s broader goal to achieve 100 percent metering in the next three years.
“We have invested heavily in metering our Maximum Demand customers. By the end of this year, we will have them fully metered. Ultimately, I want every customer to be metered,” Pinnick emphasized.
On customer engagement, Pinnick said the meeting was created to bridge communication gaps and collect feedback directly from electricity users.
“Today is about the customer. We created this forum to listen to them and get feedback so that together, we can learn and improve service delivery,” he said.
“We do this every quarter, but beyond that, customers can reach us through social media, calls, and other channels 24/7.”
He, however, identified non-payment and customer entitlement as major challenges undermining PHED’s progress, revealing that certain communities consume electricity worth over N1.2 billion monthly without paying.
“Our biggest challenge is entitlement. People don’t want to pay for electricity. For instance, the Afam community in Oyigbo consumes about N1.2 billion monthly and doesn’t pay a kobo,” he lamented.
“As long as this mentality persists, progress in the power sector will be slow.”
Pinnick also cited challenges from the transmission network, noting that PHED often faces supply disruptions beyond its control.
“We’re at the end of the power chain. So, when transmission fails, customers blame us. But we must do better at informing them when such issues occur,” he admitted.
Representing the Rivers State Ministry of Power, Engineer Mershack Orji, commended PHED’s efforts and reiterated the state government’s commitment to supporting power access through interventions despite not being legally responsible for electricity distribution.
“Governor Siminalayi Fubara has done a lot of interventions, donating and installing transformers in communities with critical power needs,” Orji said.
“Though it’s not the state’s legal responsibility, we can’t allow our people to suffer. We’ve also resolved key issues, including those affecting the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital, which now enjoys more reliable power.”
He further assured that the state’s regulatory transition process in the power sector is ongoing and will be implemented strategically.
“The regulation issues and takeover of power in the state are being handled carefully. The process will make Rivers stronger when concluded,” Orji stated.
