Electricity: Fed Govt To Limit Estimated Billing February

The Federal Government will start regulating estimated electricity bills issued by power distribution companies to their unmetered customers from February.

According to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, the Federal Government’s power sector regulator, Discos that fail to provide meters to customers would only be allowed to issue a capped sum as estimated bills to their respective power users.

NERC’s Chairman, James Momoh, told journalists in Abuja on Monday that once the regulation was released, unmetered customers would only pay what the commission compelled Discos to collect as estimated bills.

He said, “We will do everything within our powers to ensure that electricity distribution companies provide meters through the Meter Asset Providers to their customers.

“Failure to do so, we have a back-up plan, which is one of our regulations that would be out in about a month’s time on capping.”

“In the regulation, we will put a maximum amount which the Discos can charge a customer that it had not been able to provide meter for. In fact, it would be to their advantage to provide meters.”

Momoh noted that the capping regulation would make customers seek for meters, adding that it would also make power distributors provide the facility.

“The capping issue is a win-win situation for customers to want our meters and for Discos to want to provide meters,” he said.

The NERC boss explained that the regulated fee would be to the advantage of estimated power users.

“The maximum we are going to allow them (Discos) to charge will not be to the advantage of power distributors in the long run,” Momoh stated.