The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC)

  • More meters coming

    More meters coming

    •NERC approves N28bn for tranche B MAF scheme

    As part of its efforts to close the about seven million metering gap in the power sector, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has approved the disbursement of N28 billion to electricity distribution companies (DisCos) to enable them procure and install meters under the Meter Acquisition Fund (MAF) tranche B scheme.

    “DisCos shall utilise NGN28,000,000,000 (Twenty-Eight Billion Naira only) of the MAF scheme for Tranche B apportioned in accordance with their respective contributions as at the July 2025 market settlement and detailed in Schedule 1, for the procurement and installation of meters for unmetered Band ‘A’ and ‘B’ customers within their franchise areas,” NERC said.

    The money is part of government’s intervention to assist the DisCos on meter procurement to ensure that electricity consumers pay only for the power they consume and reduce friction between the customers and the DisCos.

    Not many Nigerians are comfortable with the idea of government still funding the DisCos. Afterall, they are now largely private entities and should be able to fend for themselves. But the fact also remains that the DisCos did not have the financial muscles to fund their operations.

    From their body language and attitude, it is clear they are not in a hurry to meter consumers; a primary provision they ought to have factored into their operations before they became the owners of the entities. They seem comfortable with estimated billing through which they rip off hapless power consumers.

    Perhaps nothing better supports the assertion that the DisCos are not interested in providing meters than the plan, as recently as last year, by Eko Electric to provide 355,000 meters to its customers over a five-year period. This means a paltry 71,000 meters per year. This is like a drop in the ocean by a DisCo serving a state where about 40 per cent of the power produced in the country, with its concomitantly huge metering gap, is consumed.

    If Nigerians were to go at this pace, how many decades will it take for the metering gap to be bridged?

    Against this backdrop, one can understand the predicament of the government and its reasons for making free meters available to the DisCos for onward transfer to power consumers, in many cases free of charge.

    It is instructive that the Tinubu administration’s metering initiative is not the first. The immediate past Buhari administration also initiated a 1,000,000 free meters initiative in 2020.

    Read Also: Why Nigerian Construction Act should be implemented, by Aderibigbe

    One grievous error that that administration made was that the meters that were eventually rolled out were distributed simultaneously with the ones sold to customers by the DisCos. Your guess is as good as ours on what could have happened to the free meters, especially in a country like ours where corruption is rife, and the power sector acknowledged as a leader in monumental corrupt practices.

    As things stand, we do not know whether there was thorough auditing of the previous exercises because, as at 2020, we were told the metering gap was estimated at 6.5 million. Today, we are told it is about seven million. So, what exactly is happening? The gap is supposed to be reducing as a result of previous meter rollouts.

    It would seem the present government has taken some measures to address some of the past mistakes on distribution of meters. For instance, there are timelines for virtually every aspect of the new process; from the time funds are provided to the time the meters would get to the consumers.

    In short, “The installation of meters shall be completed by 31 December 2025,” according to the NERC.

    But setting of deadlines has hardly been the problem. The problem is in getting the DisCos honour the timelines scrupulously. Any stakeholder that fails to perform to schedule should be sanctioned in line with the guidelines for the exercise.

    More important, the processes should be thoroughly audited to ensure that we do not get to the situation where the more meters are made available to power consumers, the more we need to keep supplying. By now, the metering graph should be heading southwards. If it is not, we need to find out why, so we can know whether there is genuine reason for that or not, to enable government deal with the situation appropriately.

  • DisCos Q1 revenue collection hits N116.9billion

    THE 11 dictribution companies (DisCos) collected N116.9billion from customers out of the total bill of N182.8billion in the first quarter (Q1) of this year, it was learnt on Thursday.

    Despite the increase in the amount of energy received by DisCos and a higher billing efficiency recorded relative to the preceding quarter, there is a 0.5per cent decrease in the total revenue collected by the DisCos in Q1 2019 when compared to N117.5billion collected in the Q4 of last year.

    This is contained in the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) Q1 2019 report obtained from the Commission’s website on Thursday.

    “The overall collection efficiency for all DisCos decreased to 64per cent in Q1 2019 representing a four percentage point decrease from the 68per cent collection efficiency recorded in 2018/Q4. The collection efficiency implies that for every N10 worth of energy billed to customers by DisCos in the first quarter, N4.0 remained unrecovered from customers as and when due,” the report said.

    In appraising individual performances of the Discos, the Commission said Ikeja DisCo had the highest collection efficiency of 84per cent followed by Eko DisCo with 80.3per cent. It also noted that on the contrary, Kaduna DisCo has the lowest collection efficiency of 39.6per cent. It is noteworthy that Ikeja and Kaduna DisCos retained the same ranking during Q4 2018. On a quarter-on quarter basis, Eko DisCo recorded the highest improvement in collection efficiency moving from 70.1per cent to 80.3per cent (10.2 percentage point increase).

    Read Also: DisCos collected N116.9b revenue in Q1-NERC

    “A major factor contributing to low collection efficiency is customers’ dissatisfaction with estimated billing which often resulted in an unwillingness to pay, the Commission, during the quarter, continued to monitor the procurement of meter asset providers by DisCos in line with the guidelines provided in the Meter Asset Providers (MAP) Regulations. The MAP Regulation was issued by the Commission,” the report said.

    On market remittance, the report showed that the  liquidity challenge in the electricity industry continued to manifest during Q1 2019.

    NERC added that this is evidenced in the DisCos special and international customers’ level of remittances to NBET and MO, as compared with the invoices received for energy purchased from NBET and those received for administrative services from MO.

     

     

  • CBN makes DisCos’ remittance condition for N600b disbursement

    THE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has warned would-be beneficiaries of the N600billion power sector intervention fund that the disbursement of the fund will be based on the accountability system of distribution companies (DisCos) which is driven by their performance through revenue remittance.

    The apex bank, according to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), has also pledged to support the Commission in enforcing actions against any defaulting party.

    This was contained in NERC’s sixth meeting with Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) stakeholders in Lagos.

    “The CBN cautioned that the disbursement of the NGN600billion intervention fund is premised on an accountability framework which hinges heavily on the performance of DisCos and should be reflected in improved collection efficiency and revenue remittance. The CBN also reaffirmed its support to the Commission that enforcement action be taken against defaulting Operators,” it read.

    NERC, according to the communique, also resolved  to investigate the differences emanating from the reports of the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Company (NBET) and the Market Operator (MO) of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) over energy received. “NERC shall investigate the discrepancies between energy received as reported by MO and NBET,” it added.

    Other decisions taken by NERC were among others, to monitor critical feeders in real time in order to check the inconsistencies of energy received and dispatched to consumers by DisCos.

    Read Also: CBN’s foray outside its core mandate

    The communique stressed the need to finalise the procurement of Spinning Reserves  and the meeting agreed that TCN shall consult with GenCos for the procurement of Spinning Reserves and report back to the Commission within one week.

    “The GenCos highlighted the challenges in the market and it was agreed that the Commission shall convene a dedicated meeting with them to discuss their issues with respect to payment for generated capacity, gas supply obligations and applicable exchange rates.

    “The Commission raised concern with the abysmal level of the implementation by DisCos of their Customer Enumeration, and Meter Roll-Out targets under the MAP Scheme and cautioned that enforcement action will be taken against non-compliant DisCos.

    “Only 26,000 customer meters had been installed under the MAP Scheme since its inception on May 1, 2019, emphasising that it is the responsibility of the DisCos to meter their customers and directing that DisCos take appropriate measures, including calling up the Performance Bonds entered into with MAPs if need be, to ensure that metering targets are met,” the document said.

    The Commission raised concern over verified incidences of load rejection by DisCos and cautioned against this practice, failing which appropriate enforcement action will be taken by the regulator.

  • Magodo residents praise Ikeja Electric for improved supply

    Residents of Magodo Estate, Lagos have commended Ikeja Electric Plc (IE) for providing stable electricity to customers within the estate, following the signing of the Premium Power Agreement.

    The initiative is a power purchase agreement under the willing buyer-willing seller deal by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC). It entails a commitment to specific service level standards while the customer agrees to pay a tariff that is above the MYTO tariff.

    A resident of the estate Mr. Innocent Nwankwo, expressed satisfaction with the level of supply they were getting from Ikeja Electric.

    He said: “We enjoy 24 hours supply and we believe this initiative is giving us value. We have a mixed development in Magodo estate. There are those who operate business and there are residential. We all need adequate supply. And we were able to agree on this. In my opinion, if other communities show interest, I think Ikeja Electric can replicate this initiative.”

    Another resident, Adewale Anthony,  pointed out that initiatives, such as Premium Power, will enhance growth and development within the community.

    According to him, “What we really want is now possible – and that is constant power that enables us to use it when we need it. By giving us the opportunity to enter into this agreement, we were able to make a choice of what we want in terms of supply availability. Since the signing of the contract, we have been enjoying the supply.”

    Since the implementation of the Agreement on August 15, residents of the estate have been on 24-hour supply. Under the agreement, there will also be access to dedicated customer care and technical teams for prompt resolution of queries or technical issues within the estate.

    At the contract signing, two weeks ago, IE Chief Operating Officer Mrs. Folake Soetan expressed confidence in the success of the trend-setting agreement, which, she noted, was in line with the Federal Government’s “willingseller-willing buyer” policy.

    “We are confident that this agreement will serve as a model for other power agreements in the power sector because, while it is in line with the Federal Government policy, it also reflects our unwavering commitment to our customers. This has also been made possible by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission’s directive to DisCos to provide an enabling environment with exceptional service delivery,” she said.

    The Chairman, Board of Trustees, Magodo Residents Association, Chief S.A. Owojori, also commended the technical teams from both sides for a job well done. He described the signing ceremony as a significant achievement in the community’s efforts at enjoying uninterrupted power supply, noting that the agreement, if judiciously implemented, will strengthen the relationship between the community and Ikeja Electric.

  • ‘Recovery to push generation to 3,000Mw’

    THE Transmission Company of Nigeria’s (TCN’s)  grid upgrade project is expected to recover between 2,000 megawatt (Mw) and  3,000Mw.

    TCN’s Managing Director, Usman Mohammmed, who spoke in Abuja, said the transmission company is re-conducting the line from kaduna to Zaria through Funtua and there on to Gusau, adding that it is also re-conducting the line from Birnin-Kebbi to Sokoto. The line from Aba to Itu, Kumboso to Nagujei, are also being re-conducted with high capacity wires.

    Mohammed said: “By doing that, we are going to recover between 2,000Mw and 3,000Mw, which means that automatically the grid will shift from 10,000Mw wire belt.”

    Mohammmed said the grid stabilization is one of the measures being adopted to avoid system collapse, adding that the TCN sought the approval of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) for the procurement of 260Mw spinning reserve to stabilise the grid.

    Although TCN has sought the approval since December 2018, he said, the commission is yet to grant it.

    He said: “The next thing I want to tell you is the issue of spinning reserve. We have successfully procured 260Mw spinning reserve. Now 260Mw of spinning reserve is not adequate with the average generation of 4,000mw. It is supposed to be 10 per cent, which is about 400Mw.

    “When we advertised for spinning reserve, generators responded and what we found is that it is not every generator that has the capacity to procure spinning reserve. “A generator that cannot respond quickly cannot provide spinning reserve. What we can procure is 260Mw and it not enough, but it is good enough to stabilise the grid.

    Read Also: Fire guts TCN station in Benin City

    “We should make the grid better than what it used to be than now. We forwarded that spinning reserve to NERC in December 2018 but as at today, we have not yet got approval.

    “Even today, we met with NERC and we are still pressing to get the spinning reserve. Once we get the spinning reserve, we will be able to further stabilize the grid as it is expected.”

    Mohammed also said the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) on May 5 attained the West African Pool Standard of 49.8 and 50.2Hz at 66 per cent of the time, saying this is the first time that the nation’s power sector is achieving the feat.

    Despite the accomplishment, the TCN chief said from May 6, till now, the firm has been struggling to sustain a frequency control of 49.8 and 50.2Hz.

    He noted that owing to poor network, distribution starts collapsing once it starts raining and it makes the management of frequency difficult.

    Mohammed said: “We achieve 49.5 and 60.5Hz to November 2018.

  • CWG meters get NERC’s certification

    THE Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC)  has given Meter Service Provider (MSP) Certification to CWG’s smart meters.

    The achievement of the feat came at a time the potential for scale-up in metering electricity consumers across the country opened.

    Before now, the operations of CWG Smart Utility Systems (SUS) had been restricted to servicing  clients within the real estate sector. Facilities management firms were the principal targets. However, with that model, there was virtually no opportunity to do business with the electricity distribution companies (DisCos).

    Read Also: NERC’s revenue hits N5.5b

    However, the conferment of the MSP certification has opened the CWG SUS product line to unlimited business opportunities.

    The firm will also be able engage with more DisCos, most especially now that NERC is insisting that Discos must provide meters  to customers to stop the exploitative practice of estimated billing.

    The rigorous certification process  lasted for over 10 months.

  • NERC insists on sanction for MAP slippages

    The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has insisted that it is committed to the timeline in its Meter Assets Provider (MAP) regulation, stressing that it would sanction either the electricity distribution company (DisCo) or MAP that violates the guideline.

    Speaking with The Nation, its General Manager, Finance and Management Services, Mr. Abudukadir Shetima,  said  customers of AEDC and JEDC should expect from the commencement of rollout date for meters to be installed in their premises within 10 working days of making payment to MAPs in accordance with section 18 (3) of the MAP Regulations 2018.

    Shetima, who is also the chairman, Committee on MAP, insisted that as far as NERC is concerned “the May 1 timeline still stands.  But you know that doesn’t necessary mean that on May 1, meters will be put.”

    He explained that the customer will go and indicate interest for having a meter and to make up-front  payment which is one of the option.

    Shetima added that when the customer does that the process is that the DisCos will go and inspect his premises and ensure that it is ready for meter deployment.

    He said: “For instance, if there is need to do a network clean up, the DisCo will do that. So, that will take a couple of days and then the customer will be instructed to go and make payment.

    Read Also: NERC insists on sanction for MAP slippages

    “When he makes payment within 10 days the MAP will have to install the meter.  That same date is from the date of payment. The date of payment is dependent on the inspection of the premises from the first of May.

    “The Commission is still committed to those timeline and when we review, we come for monitoring and we see that there is slippages then there is sanction from either the MAP or the DisCo.”

    NERC had on April 6 this year announced the appointment of  Mojec International Limited, Meron Consortium and Turbo Engineering Limited that it permitted to provide 487,000, 213,000 and 200,000 meters respectively.

    It said while JEDC has appointed the Triple 7 and Mojec International Limited consortium to provide 500,000 meters.

    The Commission spelt it out that the rollout of meters shall commence no later than the 1st of May 2019.

    Similarly, on April 12, the Commission gave the May 1 deadline to Ikeja and Benin DisCos for their MAPs to rollout their meters.

    NERC announced that  IEDC appointed Mojec International Limited- (399,790 meters), Consolidated Infrastructure Group Ltd- (397,922 meters) and New Hamshire Capital Ltd-(276,699 meters) respectively within the Ikeja Disco franchise under MAP. While Benin Disco has appointed FLT Energy System Ltd, G-Unit Engineering Ltd, Inlaks Power Solution Ltd, Sabrud Consortium Nigeria Ltd and Turbo Energy Ltd to provide meters within its franchise.

  • TCN gives reasons for grid collapse despite $1.6b investments

    Despite the $1.6billion investments in transmission lines and substations, the Managing Director, Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Mr. Usman Gur Mohammed Saturday gave excuses why the electricity system has been experiencing incessant system collapse.

    While he blamed the mess the investment that was yet to crystalize, lack of full frequency control, absence of spinning reserve and register of events, he also shifted part of the blame to the electricity distribution companies (DisCos), which he said their low utilization of load was accountable for the system collapse.

    The TCN, he said, needs to have frequency control to have a stabilized grid, although the company has achieved 49.5 and 50.5Hz from May 2017 to December 2018 and 49.75  to 50.25Hz still in December which is almost 80% of the time instead of 100%.

    According to him, the company also needs to have spinning reserve as with the average generation of 4,000mw, the spinning reserve is supposed to be 400mw, but the TCN has 0mw spinning reserve.

    Mohammed who was briefing reporters in Abuja  on the recent system instability in the country, dropped the hint that the company has done competitive procurement of spinning reserve, under the directive of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) for the 260mw, which would still be inadequate but better for a stable grid.

    He however noted that the commission was yet to approve the procurement of the 260mw spinning reserve.

    Mohammed said for the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry to have a stable grid, it must have a register of event that will register any player on the grid to observe activities in the grid.

    Read Also: TCN explains collapse of national grid

    Since there is no register of event, it is impossible to see violators of the grid and to mete out the necessary sanctions to them.

    The TCN boss said that “the kind of grid we are managing, whenever it rains the whole supply will go down. Even Abuja that is that is built like a model city that is under ground, if it rains, you discover that the power of Abuja goes down. The down tool of distribution network can also lead to system collapse.”

    He noted that this is the reason that he has always called for the recapitalization of the DisCos to match the level of investment that the transmission company has achieved.

    Usman said that “if you look at the interface between us and the distribution companies there is no adequate protection. As we speak with you most of the network, it is the TCN protection that is also providing protection for evoke houses, which is not normal.”

    He revealed that out of the 738 interfaces with the DisCos, only 421 have have full protection on the sides of the DisCos.

    Apart from pointing accusing the DisCos of low investments in equipment that should enable them absolve more load, he accepted the TCN has invested in the grid it still the fund is yet to crystallize.

    His words: “You are aware that we raised significant of investments in lines and substations up to $1.6billion. But you know that the investment in transmission takes time, it is not something you can fix in one day.

    “Of course, we have used our staff, using the equipment we recovered from ports (730 containers) out of 800 containers. That we have been able to invest in the lines and substations. But we are not yet there because the critical acclaim investment from even the donors are not yet crystallized.”

    Mohammed “our grid is still fragile. It is a journey that will take us to a stabilized grid.”

    On the Apo incident, he explained that what happened in Apo recently where we had a transformer that got burnt, TCN restored supply within two hours because of its possession of N-1 equipment.

    He said that it means that “we should have line in loop so that if there is problem in one line we can shift from it. That is what it means by critical investment in line and substations.”

  • NERC permits firms to rollout 1.4 meters

    The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) issued permits to Meter Asset Providers (MAPs) to roll out 1,400,000 meters.

    The directive, according to a statement that the NERC’s General Manager, Public Affairs Department, Dr. Usman Abba Arabi issued on Saturday, is in line with section 4(3) of the MAP Regulations 2018, to MAPs that were successful in the procurements conducted by Abuja Electricity Distribution Company Plc (“AEDC”) and Jos Electricity Distribution Company Plc (“JEDC”).

    The statement noted that section 4(3) of the MAP Regulation 2018 requires all electricity distribution licensees to engage MAPs that would assist, as investors, in closing the metering gap and thus eliminating the practice of estimated billing in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (“NESI”).

    AEDC, said the commission, has appointed Mojec International Limited, Meron Consortium and Turbo Engineering Limited to provide 487,000, 213,000 and 200,000 meters respectively while JEDC has appointed the Triple 7 and Mojec International Limited consortium to provide 500,000 meters.

    Read Also: Metering is DisCos’ obligation, NERC insists

    The Commission has directed that the rollout of meters shall commence no later than the 1st of May 2019.  Customers of AEDC and JEDC should expect from the commencement of rollout date for meters to be installed in their premises within 10 working days of making payment to MAPs in accordance with section 18 (3) of the MAP Regulations 2018.

    MAPs shall charge a maximum of N36,991.50 for single phase meters and N67,055.85 for three phase meters.  These costs are inclusive of supply, installation, maintenance and replacement of meters over its technical life.

    The Commission shall monitor closely the rollout plan of distribution licensees and overall compliance with the regulation and various service agreements by the MAP and electricity distribution licensees.

  • Meter asset providers to begin operation soon, says NERC

    The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) is working to ensure that firms, which applied to serve as meter asset providers under the new metering arrangements, begin operation soon, its officer in charge of Meter Asset Providers (MAPs), Mr Shittu Shuaibu, has said.

    In an interview with The Nation on phone, he said the Commission is not leaving any stone unturned to ensure the success of the new metering scheme, which culminated in the introduction of the meter asset providers, as a third-party in the distribution and supply of electricity meters to the customers.

    Shuaibu said: “Meter asset providers are likely to start operation very soon as the regulator is working hard to ensure they are licensed to carry out the responsibilities of metering the unmetered customers in the country.”

    Meanwhile, stakeholders are upbeat on the future of the scheme, adding that the flagging off of the new metering scheme and subsequently meter asset providers, marked a new dawn in the sector, which has for long been grappling with problems such as acute shortage of meters, estimated billings and huge arrears of unpaid bills, ostensibly owed by electricity consumers.

    Momas Electricity Meter Manufacturing Company Limited (MEMMCOL) Chief Executive officer, Mr Kola Balogun, said meter asset providers may be licensed by NERC to start operation before the end of the first quarter of 2019.

    According to him, firms that wish to play as meter asset providers in the sector have applied to NERC, granted ‘No Objection’ status by the Commission, had their performance reviewed in the market, made to seek the power distribution companies (DisCos) they would partner, while also awaiting final approval from NERC.

    “Between this February and March ending, something concrete as regards the commencement of the activities of meter asset providers would happen.  I’m sure that the firms that are seeking to start operation as MAPs would start work, either by end of February or March 2019,” he added.

    According to him, the new metering plans would provide opportunities for operators to play better by acquiring and building bigger markets for themselves, stressing that direct and indirect jobs will be created, more meters would be made, which would culminate in appreciable reduction in metering gap in the country.

    On funding, Balogun said the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is planning to provide interventions for operators in the nation’s metering sub-sector by assisting them to get facility at more beneficial rates.

    The CBN, he said, is looking for a platform through which it would intervene in the activities of the meter asset providers as NERC gives them operating licences soon.

    Electricity Meter Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (EMMAN) Executive Secretary, Mr. Muhideen Ibrahim, said his members are keying into the new metering programme introduced by the Federal Government in the wake of the rising scarcity of meters in the sector. EMMAN is an umbrella body for meter producers in Nigeria.

    He said meter manufacturers are working to complement the efforts of the Federal Government,by participating fully in the new metering initiatives. This, Muhideen said, is evident by the new technologies acquired by producers of meters in order to be able to mass-produce meter and further help in reducing the 4.7million metering gap in the country.

    He said, beyond this, manufacturers are providing logistics as well as building capacity in order to strengthen the operation of the sub-sector. He said operators are preparing highly skilled technicians and engineers to work when the meter asset providers commence operation soon.

    He said the building of a training school by MEMMCOL and the subsequent inuaguration by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo in 2018, was an indication that operators, especially metering companies, are ready to make the government programme work.

    He said Unistar High-Tech Limited is another indigenous metering firm, which has keyed into the government’s policy of providing meters to customers through meter asset providers.