NERC to DisCos: ‘No licensee is bigger than their regulator’
Omeiza Bilal
The Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), has warned distribution companies that “no licensee is bigger than their regulator.”
Giving the warning during the 4th NESI Stakeholders meeting in Abuja, NERC Vice Chairman, Dr. Musiliu Oseni, added that the DisCos should be ready to cooperation the new state regulators especially with the establishment of State Electricity Regulatory Commissions (SERC).
Dr. Oseni also revealed that there are currently 600,000 to 700,000 meters available in the country. He challenged utilities to improve publicity and rollout speed, noting that with the level of investment by the government, there is need for the DisCos to up their game.
The NERC Vice Chairman stressed that the regulator will no longer fold its hand while DisCos underperformed. According to him, report that some DisCos have only achieved 2% performance on MAP meter refunds to customers was unacceptable saying that it “would be met with necessary sanctions.”
Addressing recent media misinformation regarding the tenure of NERC Commissioners, Dr. Oseni clarified the “Staggering Principle” embedded in Section 36 of the Electricity Act which was exported from the Electricity Power Sector Reform Act (EPSRA) and applied to only the pioneer Commission. Subsequent Chairmen and Commissioners have 5-year tenures as provided in Section 36 (1) of the EA.
In his presentation, Commissioner for Corporate Services, Nathan Shatti, told DisCos present that they do not any reason for delay in installing meters that have been paid for by their customers.
“If your network is not ready for metering, do not collect people’s money,” he insisted.
He further observed that for every transformer or meter not installed, DisCos incur losses, hence it is in their interest to meter customers and fix transformer-related issues.
He also revealed that over 350,000 meters are yet to be migrated to the new STS standard, demanding immediate cleanup of obsolete data.
“Stop behaving as if you are doing customers a favor,” he added.
On his part, NERC Commissioner, Legal, Licensing and Compliance, Dafe Akpeneye, dismissed the excuse from DisCos that they cannot locate thousands of meters because customers moved them without authorisation.
Drawing a parallel to the banking sector, he argued that just as a “Post No Debit” order forces a bank customer to visit a branch, DisCos must use their vending platforms to enforce compliance. “If you don’t know where the meter is, the customer shouldn’t be able to vend,” he stated.
He advised the DisCos to “Issue a public notice that you cannot identify these meters. Block them from vending and take them off your system until the people concerned come forward.”
