Prepaid Meter: Federal Approves N33b intervention fund for Discos

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <header class="post-header cf" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 21px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="featured" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 14px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <a href="http://sunnewsonline.com/new/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/PHCN-NERC-Chairman-Sam-Amadi.jpg" itemprop="image" rel="prettyPhoto" style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" title="Prepaid Meter: FG approves N33bn intervention fund for Discos"><span style="color: black;"><img alt="PHCN NERC Chairman Sam Amadi" class="attachment-main-slider wp-post-image no-display appear" height="336" src="http://sunnewsonline.com/new/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/PHCN-NERC-Chairman-Sam-Amadi-702x336.jpg" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.4s ease-in-out; border: 0px; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 0.8; padding: 0px; transition: all 0.4s ease-in-out; vertical-align: baseline;" title="Prepaid Meter: FG approves N33bn intervention fund for Discos" width="702" /></span></a></div> <h1 class="post-title" itemprop="name" style="border: 0px; float: left; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px 35px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 18px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Prepaid Meter: FG approves N33bn intervention fund for Discos</span></span></h1> <a class="comments" href="http://sunnewsonline.com/new/?p=78038#comments" style="border: 0px; float: right; margin: 0px 0px 0px -35px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span class="fa fa-comments-o" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; display: inline-block; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: auto; vertical-align: baseline;"></span> </span></span></a><a href="http://sunnewsonline.com/new/?cat=5" rel="category" style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;" title="View all posts in Business"><span style="color: black;">S</span></a></header><div class="post-container cf" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <div class="post-content-right" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <div class="post-content description" itemprop="articleBody" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px -1.857em; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"> <div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.857em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br /></span></div> <div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.857em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The Federal Govern­ment has approved N33 billion low in­terest intervention fund to support the Distribution Companies (DISCOs) in the country to buy meters and other electric power acces­sories.</span></div> <div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.857em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Director General of BPE, Mr. Benjamin Dikki, who gave the hint during a Radio Nigeria Live/Phone-in Pro­gramme—Radio Link, ex­plained that the country needs three million meters yearly.</span></div> <div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.857em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The move according to Dikki was aimed at bridging the huge metering gap in the country. He said the country had an installed power capaci­ty of 6,000 megawatts but was generating only about 3,000 to 4,000 megawatts, noting that revenues from the 3,000 megawatts were not sufficient to support the power infra­structure, while also assuring that when power generation increases, the fixed charge will go.</span></div> <div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.857em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Dikki explained that, it is the initial sacrifice consumers had to make given the huge financial investment made by the new power investors who are yet to obtain adequate re­turns on their investments.</span></div> <div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.857em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The BPE boss said that in line with what obtained at the initial stages of the reform in the telecoms sector when the cost of the Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cards and tele­phone handsets was as high as N50,000 per SIM but has now crashed to free SIMs with air time, “the electricity fixed charge will also crash”.</span></div> <div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.857em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Meanwhile the agency has said that the fixed charge currently borne by electric­ity consumers in the country would be dispensed with as soon as power generation in­creases to an economically sustainable level.</span></div> <div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.857em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The Nigeria Electric­ity Regulatory Commission (NERC) had in May, ordered Distribution Companies (Dis­cos) to suspend further collec­tion of fixed charges on un­consumed electricity if power was not supplied continuously or cumulatively for 15 days in a month.</span></div> <div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.857em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">NERC Chairman, Dr. Sam Amadi, said that, “any customer who experiences continuously or cumulatively power outage for 15 days in a month will be exempted from paying the monthly fixed charge to the Electricity Dis­tribution Company (Discos).”</span></div> <div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.857em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The order, according to Amadi, who spoke to report­ers in Abuja, took effect from May 1, 2014. He further ex­plained that in as much as the 15 days power outage was not due to the customer’s dis­ruption or default in paying bill, the Discos shall forego monthly fixed charge.</span></div> <div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.857em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The decision, according to him, was based on the com­mission’s 2005 Act, Section 32 D and F, while he stated that the NERC has decided that the fixed charge remains an essential component of the bill. It has, however, reviewed its continued reflection in the tariff in the payment of the fixed charge in the light of sev­eral complaints by consumers, particularly the payment of the fixed charge when energy is not delivered to them.</span></div> <div> <br /></div> </div> </div> </div> </div>

Prepaid Meter: Federal Approves N33b intervention fund for Discos

Prepaid Meter: FG approves N33bn intervention fund for Discos   S The Federal Govern­ment has approved N33 billion low in­terest ...

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