The Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC) says the business is resuming providing its customers with free prepaid meters after a heated upup over estimated billing and customer fault with its meters.
In the days to come, the installation work under Tranche B of the Meter Acquisition Fund (MAF) and Phase 1 of the Distribution Sector Recovery Program (DISREP), two initiatives aimed at bridging the metering gap, will be conducted.
A total of 33, 450 smart meters will be deployed under the MAF Tranche B, and 22, 104 meters will be deployed under Phase 1 of the DISREP, according to a statement released and signed by the Company’s Coordinating Head, Corporate Services, Angela Olanrewaju.
Unmetered customers on Band A feeders are prioritized in the meter rollout under MAF, while Bands A and B will receive priority as Bands A and B.
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IBEDC reiterated that customers should not pay any money to an installer or IBEDC staff because both the meters and the installation procedure are completely free.
She continued, “The installation is also free, and the meters are completely free. Customers are not permitted to pay anyone in any way. Anyone who wishes to make a payment request should contact [email protected] or [email protected].
The business explained that IBEDC supports the MAF initiative through a NERC-established market-supported mechanism, which allows DisCos to close the metering gap across the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).
The initiative is intended to promote nationwide metering and complements the Presidential Metering Initiative (PMI). MAF meters are available for customers at no extra cost, but it will run concurrently with the MAP scheme.
IBEDC also urged customers to grant installers access to their premises if they had a valid ID when conducting the exercise, as denial of access could cause the premises to be disconnected.
Olanrewaju also warned against tampering with or bypassing the new meters, claiming that doing so would result in serious penalties.
Customers who have outstanding arrears are encouraged to call the IBEDC office to request resolution (to facilitate the transition to prepayment mode).
However, it stated that paying late fees won’t prevent a person from receiving a free meter under this arrangement.
Source: Channels TV
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