THE Abuja Electricity Distribution Company, AEDC, has announced that it is set to procure additional 30,000 prepaid meters to intensify mass metering of customers in its franchise locations. The AEDC franchise locations include Kogi, Niger, Nasarawa States and the Federal Capital Territory.

Ernest Mupwaya, managing director, AEDC, while signing the contract for supply of the meters, explained that contract for supply of the meters valued at $3.7 million (equivalent N1.29 billion) was awarded to ZTE Nigeria Ltd, a Chinese company operating in Nigeria. The AEDC had in June procured 60,000 prepaid meters worth N2.4 billion from MOJEC International, a local meter manufacturer.

The company had embarked on a mass metering project in December 2016, with a target of installing 120,000 meters annually in its areas of operation. It said that the metering of customers was to bridge the metering gap, reduce estimation billing, restore the confidence of customers and ultimately improve the revenue of the company.

Mupwaya said that the company would have met its target of 120,000 meters for 2017 by procuring the additional 30,000 meters. The meters comprise 24,000 single phase and 6,000 three phase meters. About N214 million would be used to procure additional materials to install the meters.

The meters would help customers to monitor the rate of electricity consumed, reduce load shedding on the part of the company and ultimately help eradicate energy theft by some consumers. Mupwaya said that the installation of the meters would also facilitate the revenue collection profile of the company.

According to him, the continuous inflow of cash to the company will also enhance the procurement of more meters for customers. He advised consumers to desist from bypassing its meters, and other forms of energy theft, adding that it was affecting the operation of the company in terms of technical and commercial losses.

—  Jul 17, 2017 @ 01:00 GMT