The Nation Newspaper

Tag: IKEDC

  • ‘IKEDC gets only 300 megawatts’

    ‘IKEDC gets only 300 megawatts’

    The Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC) operates on 300 megawatts (Mw) of electricity, as a result of recent drop in power generation in the country, its General Manager, Customer Services, Ms Olubukola Ojuronpe has said.

    Ojuronpe said the development is coming on the heels of the recent drop in power generation by 963 megawatts (Mws) from 3,463Mw to 2, 500Mw. She said the firm receives 300 megawatts, instead of 1,000 megawatts, adding that the development is affecting power distribution in the area.

    She said: ‘’Due to reduction in the electricity megawatts allocated to Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company, we have no choice than to embark on rationing of light. An average person cannot get light for more than six hours a day. If it comes to load shedding, we have to do it to.’’

    She said the statement by the Minister of Power, Prof Chinedu Nebo that electricity generation has dropped drastically is good, capable of letting the public knows the on-goings in the power sector.

    She attributed bureaucratic bottlenecks affected distribution of supply during the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) era, stressing that the problem is not new.

    ‘’ Contractors were made to supply metres before the privatisation of PHCN. Then we are under the government and we all know delays that accompany such responsibilities. Now that PHCN has been unbundled and given to privately run operators, it our duties( power firms) to seek how the process of supplying metres would be fast-tracked. One of the conditions given to the new power investors is that they must look for technical partners abroad to handle certain issues. For the distribution companies, the partners must ensure that critical infrastructure is made available to the companies for growth.

    ‘’ When we are under the government, we give consumers what we got from the government. But that has since changed. We must ensure that we meet the needs of consumers by providing quality services to them as time goes on.

    According to her, efforts are being made to improve on services rendered to the public in the light of transition from a publicly-owned electricity company to a privately run firms.

    The power distribution companies, Ojuronpe said, are not happy that the country is in darkness since people need electricity for growth. She said the problem is beyond the power firms, enjoined consumers to exercise patient.

     

  • Ikeja Disco invests N600m in power supply

    •Ibadan firm restores metering scheme

    TO improve power supply, the Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC) has injected about N600million into its operation.

    Its Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Abiodun Ajifowobaje, said at the firm’s customers’ forum in Lagos that this was a quick intervention to ensure short-term customer satisfaction.

    The management, he said, was continuing with its long term plan for sustainable electricity supply.

    He explained that the essence of the forum was to create mutual interaction between the firm and its customers, and to identify areas that would enable the company serve the customers better.

    He said the forum would be held regularly as a communication window and feedback mechanism.

    He said: “We conduct customers’ forum in all our business units so that we can use the opportunity to meet with them and tell them what we are doing and our plans for the future. We also want to create a two-way mutual interaction aimed at finding ways to improve service and serve our customers better.

    “Our board under the quick win-win intervention, approved about N600 million for us to do all projects including metering, inauguration of on-going transformer projects, replacement of vandalised transformers, re-metering and also do some overhead line clearance, which often cause network disability.”

    Ajifowobaje also said about 30 transformers had been installed to cushion electricity supply, and about 115 transformer installation projects were on-going and would be completed within the next one month.

    He said about 30 transformers parked up, while about 42 were vandalised before the new management took over last November, adding that all the bad transformers had been repaired.

    “The Board has approved installation of some transformers under what we call ‘win-win’ approach to address customers’ complaints and to replace all the bad transformers. Going forward, we will be repairing all bad transformers and reinstalling them, as well as completing all pending transformer installation projects in all sites within the network. With all these, we assure customers within our network of stable power supply when completed.

    “Our technical partners have commenced evaluation of meter system and very soon, we will come out with very robust metering system, but pending the completion of this arrangement, the company is installing meters for customers who have paid for meters.

    “About 6,000 customers have paid for prepaid meters and we have commenced metering them, while we also target about 7,000 customers to be metered by next month,” he said.

    He appealed to customers to alert the management of any suspicious movement from anybody, adding that protecting the equipment would help to ensure stable power supply.

    He said the management of IKEDC sought the assistance of the Nigerian Army, State Security Service, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Nigerian Police and the state government in protecting its equipment.

    Meanwhile, the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) has revitalised its Credited Advance Payment for Metering Implementation (CAPMI) scheme to hasten the metering of customers’ houses.

    Its spokesman, Tokunbo Peters, explained that under the scheme, which was first introduced by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), customers who make advance payment for meters would be attended to within 45 days from the date of payment.

    The amount advanced by customers for the meter would be refunded with a nominal interest over a period of not more than three years through rebate in the monthly fixed charge component of their electricity bills, he said.

    He encouraged customers on estimated billing and prospective ones to visit their office and apply.

    “The revitalisation of CAPMI scheme is a demonstration of the company’s commitment to metering all its customers and ultimately eradicating estimated billing in its entire franchise area,” he said.

    Ibadan DISCO area is Ogun, Oyo, Osun and Kwara states, as well as parts of Ekiti, Kogi and Niger states.

  •  Ikeja power warns cable vandals

    The Business Manager, Ikeja Business Unit of Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC), Mr. Lateef Olaleye, has warned those behind the incessant vandalism of electric cables and accessories in his network to desist or meet their waterloo.

    The Senior Manager, Public Affairs, of the Business Unit, Rotimi Afolayan, said Olaleye described the cable thieves and their sponsors as vermins who are not fit to live in any decent society, adding that the company would soon put in place sterner measures that would make it very difficult for the vandals to tamper with its installations.

    Olaleye, who was alarmed at the recurring rate of the vandalism of the company’s transformer distribution substations in the last few weeks, said that such acts were nothing but sabotage because no person in his right senses would want to risk his life by cutting and taking away live electrical materials that would at the end of the day earn them less than N50, 000 in the market.

    Olaleye, who spoke at an enlarged meeting of the management and staff of the Business Unit, including the service managers and their distribution and marketing managers, directed the undertakings’ staff to enlighten their customers to be more vigilant over electrical installations in their areas.

    He explained that the security of electricity facilities is not the duty of only the new owners of the power companies but everyone.

    He said within the last one month, three substations had been vandalised. “As I am speaking to you, I just received a call that our Emmanuel 500kVA substation at Maryland, an area that is very close to the Ikorodu express, has been vandalised,” he said warning that this wanton destruction of the company’s facilities just has to stop.

     

  • Better days coming, firm tells customers

    NEWpower firm, the Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC) has said it is doing everything possible to meet customers’ needs.

    It promised them better service delivery in the days ahead, saying it is in continuous engagement with its Korean technical partners to ensure seamless and equitable distribution of power across its network.

    The firm made the pledge during a meeting with customers as part of its Corporate Social Resposibility (CSR) and sensitisation campaign.

    Commending them for their support, the General Manager, Customer Service, Olori Olubukola Osiberu, said IKEDC remained committed to delivering world-class service with the support of its technical partners and its customers.

    He said to the CSR was designed to provide a platform for IKEDC to interact with the public to create better understanding of its activities as well as the rights and the responsibilities of the consumers.

    She explained that distribution companies are at the end of the energy value chain and can only distribute the power generated and transmitted by GENCOS and TRANCOS. She urged customers to show more understanding and take advantage of IKEDC flyers containing contacts of its principal officers to make complaints and contributions that will move the sector forward.

    She stressed that gas shortage, vandalism, sabotage and energy theft as key challenges bedevilling the process of power supply in the nation. “The challenge of inadequate gas supply is huge and what we have been getting as DISCOS has reduced drastically. We are also faced with the challenge of vandals destroying our facilities and installations. However, we are committed to ensuring equitable distribution of available power to our customers at all times,” she said.

    A representative of Ikeja Local Government Chairman, Yomi Afolabi, commended IKEDC for organising a platform for customers to present their complaints. He urged the company to provide customer service points for easy access to the company and overhaul its metering system to eradicate estimated billing.

    “I am appealing to all residents in Ikeja and its environs to be patient with the new investors and owners of IKEDC as they continue to work towards meeting our need for uninterrupted supply in the nearest future,” he added.

    Discussions at the meeting centred on power outages, estimated billing, extortion and absence of pre-paid meters and Osiberu agreed with that the power sector requires an overhaul of existing infrastructure, investment in new technology and capacity building to enable the nation move to a position of uninterrupted power supply.

    She also urged customers to play their roles as stakeholders in the power sector by reporting cases of vandalism and extortion to relevant authorities as well as ensuring prompt payment of their bills.

     

  • Why power supply is poor, by business manager

    The Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC) provides power to consumers on the basis of energy allocated to it from the national grid, its Business Manager, Akowonjo Business Unit, in Lagos Sani Mohammed has said.

    Speaking to residents of 121 Road, Gowon Estate Egbeda, a Lagos, suburb who complained about power outage in the area, Mohammed said reduction in energy was responsible for poor power supply in Egbeda and other areas.

    He said: “If power supply is available, I cannot use it to entertain anybody or take it to my house. If the transmission does not supply energy, we will not be given bill at the end of the month. If it is possible that all residents are given prepaid meters now, I will be happier because I will sleep well at home. Even if you have a functioning analogue meter and someone is reading the meter and you are given a bill based on what you used, you cannot contest that.

    “Alimosho feeder that you are connected with is overloading now and since you cannot wait until the power situation is over, you can go to our head office at Ikeja to lodge complaint. We do not have the material to connect you back,”

    He said consumers have the right to complain when they are not getting power that is proportionate to the bills they are paying.

    “But when they give yo an estimated bill when power supply is not regular, you have the right to contest it,” he said. He assured the residents that there would be an improvement when the energy allocation to the district improves.

    Also, the leader of the group, Mr Edward Olley urged IKEDC to improve power supply in the area, noting that residents have suffered for it.

  • Ikeja DISCO to customers: report extortion

    Ikeja DISCO to customers: report extortion

    The Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC) has advised customers to report staff trying to extort money from them to buy pre-paid meters or repair faulty equipment.

    The company’s Assistant General Manager, Public Affairs, Pekun Adeyanju, advised customers to report at any of the IKEDC’s 11 business units at Abule-Egba, Akowonjo, Ikeja, Ikorodu, Ikotun, Ipaja, Odogunyan, Ogba, Ojodu, Oshodi and Somolu.

    He said the firm supplies, repairs, and replaces its equipment. He said the management had since started customer education campaigns aimed at creating awareness on the efforts to improve service delivery and encourage customer involvement in ensuring the success of the power reform.

    He said: “It has come to our notice that some former PHCN members of staff have allegedly been extorting money from members of the public under the guise of receiving contributions towards the repairs of equipment in their localities and purchase of prepaid meters. For the avoidance of doubt, no former PHCN staff or IKEDC staff is authorised to make such demands. We urge the public to rebuff these impostors and report such cases to the nearest IKEDC office, ikedcc@yahoo.com or send SMS to 08174598393 for prompt investigation and resolution.”

    The firm warned that it is a criminal offence for unathorised persons to tamper with any IKEDC facility or equipment, adding that defaulters will be prosecuted. The company, he said, had embarked on an upgrade of its customer-care centre at its 11 business units to accelerate complaint resolution and respond promptly to issues bordering on metering, estimated billing, shedding and vandalism, among others.

    Adeyanju said IKEDC was partnering with relevant authorities to address vandalism of its equipment, but however, urged consumers to be vigilant and report any suspicious activities around equipment in their areas to the law enforcement agencies as well as IKEDC

    “It is imperative that people who ask for their rights should first be responsible to the society,” he added.

    IKEDC management has been holding inaugural town hall meetings across its various locations to establish a roadmap towards providing uninterrupted quality power supply to consumers. The company is also holding corporate social responsibility activities, which kicked off with free medical services in Ketu last December and free eye care treatment for residents of Ikorodu and Odogunyan this month with plans to hold in other areas.

  • Ikeja DISCO assures service delivery

    Ikeja DISCO assures service delivery

    The  management of Ikeja Electricity  Distribution Company  (IKEDC) is strategising to improve service delivery to customers.

    The management and members of staff held an inaugural town hall meetings across its various locations to establish a roadmap towards providing stable power supply to customers soon.

    The Assistant General Manager (Public Affairs), Pekun Adeyanju, said the town hall meetings designed to hold periodically, identified the need to seek public support and understanding through sustained consumer education campaigns that portray a realistic picture of the state of power distribution and the transition period needed by operators to attain enhanced power supply.

    He said that NEDC/KEPCO consortium emerged the new owners of the former Ikeja Distribution Company following the transfer of PHCN assets to them on November 1, 2013 by the Federal Government. The company has the Korean Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) as technical partners.

    He said KEPCO is the largest electricity utility company in Asia in terms of transmission and distribution, and has six generation subsidiaries with 67,000 megawatts (MW) capacity, as well as several subsidiary companies and global efficiency record of maximum downtime period of four minutes annually.

    The Manager, Transmission and Distribution Business, KEPCO, Mr. Alex Kim, advised the IKEDC staff to be ”drivers of change,” adding that the management and its technical partners remain committed to instituting a positive paradigm shift in the power sector through new technology, capacity building, and world-class customer service.

    “We believe that our members of staff are key assets for us in this journey towards driving economic growth and development in Nigeria through a robust power sector.

    He stressed the need for a renewed customer-centric approach to service delivery. “The nation is looking to the largest distribution company for leadership and I am confident that we have what it takes to change the face of power supply in Nigeria,” he added.

    Fielding questions from staff on job security, safety, training and reward, among others, Kim assured that the firm will stop at nothing to ensure that deserving staff are recognised, rewarded and motivated to operate optimally.

    “Our focus is not on rightsising or rationalisation, instead, we are looking to building an enduring enterprise with you all as partners, equipped with the right training, operating under safe environment in order to deliver to the cause of providing excellent service,” he said.

    ”We are looking at a future that promises efficient billing, seamless collection, and unmatched customer satisfaction. We must imbibe the culture of putting our customers first and treating our customers with respect,” he stated.