Business
NERC lashes back at DisCos on whose responsibility it is to supply meters
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has said the obligation to ensure electricity consumers have meters rests on the shoulders of the Distribution Companies (Discos).
This was a reaction to a statement by the Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors (ANED), the umbrella body for the Discos, that Discos were no longer responsible for the provision of meters to electricity consumers across the country.
The Executive Director of ANED, Mr Sunday Oduntan, was reported on Monday to have said, ‘’Metering has been taken off the Discos’ primary responsibility and that is why the Federal Government through NERC came up with MAPs. In summary, the meter asset providers are essentially now in charge of metering, not the Discos.’’
But in a statement on Monday NERC said, “This is consistent with their respective licensing terms and conditions and Section 4 (1) of the said regulations that provides that, inter alia, distribution licensee is responsible for the achievement of metering targets as specified by the commission from time to time.”
Read also: We’re no longer responsible for providing meters- DisCos
It further stated that Section 4 (3) of the MAP Regulation and the provisions of the MAP Regulations 2018 required that all distribution licensees should engage the services of meter asset providers within 120 days towards meeting the metering targets.
The commission said, “The deadline was fixed for July 31, 2018 but was extended to November 30, 2018 to engender more competition between potential MAPs, thus providing better value for consumers.
“Several of the Discos experienced slippage in the timeline stipulated by the commission and this infraction is being handled in line with the enforcement regulations of the commission.
“The commission wishes to reaffirm its commitment to expedite a closure of the current metering gap, thus limiting the practice of estimated billing to very exceptional cases in line with the provisions of the MAP regulations,” it added.
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