Estimated Billing: FG Set To Begin Second Phase Of Mass Metering Programme

The federal government yesterday said that it had concluded
arrangements to commence the second phase of its National Mass
Metering Programme (NMMP) which it expects to drastically reduce
estimated billing by the Distribution Companies (Discos).

A statement from the office of the Special Adviser on
Infrastructure to the President, Mr. Ahmad Zakari, noted that the
next phase of the initiative will ensure consumers are billed
appropriately for the electricity they consume by installing meters
free of charge in households and business premises that are
currently unmetered.

The federal government described the programme which is being
funded by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), as “unprecedented”,
saying that it had led to the supply of meters to many Nigerian
homes for free.

The first phase, tagged ‘Phase 0’ was launched later than
expected in December 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with a
target of 1 million meters across the country and has yielded about
750,000 meters nationwide in about eight month, the statement
said.

“This is a marked improvement in terms of the speed of
installation of meters compared to its predecessor (the Meter Asset
Provider-MAP programme) which recorded 350,000 meter installations
in just over 18 months. Essentially the Nigerian meter industry has
increased local installation capacity by a multiple of five.

“In preparation for the second phase (known as Phase 1) of the
NMMP, the Nigerian electricity sector regulator, NERC, has
conducted extensive consultations and stakeholder management, and
has revised its metering guidelines. This phase will provide up to
4 million meters and shall also use a similar financing mechanism
as phase 0,” Zakari noted.

According to him, one of the key successes of the NMMP
initiative is how rapidly it has increased private sector interest
in investing in the local meter assembly, manufacturing and
installation space.

In addition, he said that there are now new meter factories in
Lagos and in Kaduna, while the refurbishment of a number of other
defunct metering companies are ongoing.

“This development in the meter assembly space is driven by the
Central Bank’s commitment to support local meter
assembly/manufacturing as only local companies will be allowed to
participate in the bidding process for the upcoming phase of the
programme.

“This promises to increase the job creation impact of the
programme which has already attained appreciable heights with over
10,000 direct jobs created as a result of the phase 0 of the
programme,” Zakari added.

He stated that for Phase 1, a central procurement mechanism to
be overseen and supervised by NERC will be deployed in order to
ensure that meters are secured at the lowest possible cost.

According to him, this is aimed at reaching the goals and
objectives of the national metering programme, noting that the
commencement of the procurement process of Phase 1 has been done
strategically to ensure that there is no gap in meter supply to
customers as the initiative transitions from Phase 0 to Phase
1.

“The Minister of Power has emphasised the administration’s
commitment to eliminate the metering gap by 2023. The continuation
of the NMMP is in line with the federal government’s agreement with
organised labour on electricity sector reform,” he said.

Estimated billing remains one of the challenges of the power
sector in the country, with customer complaints over the years that
they are given “outrageous” estimates beyond what they are supplied
every month by the Discos.

The federal government yesterday said that it had concluded
arrangements to commence the second phase of its National Mass
Metering Programme (NMMP) which it expects to drastically reduce
estimated billing by the Distribution Companies (Discos).

A statement from the office of the Special Adviser on
Infrastructure to the President, Mr. Ahmad Zakari, noted that the
next phase of the initiative will ensure consumers are billed
appropriately for the electricity they consume by installing meters
free of charge in households and business premises that are
currently unmetered.

The federal government described the programme which is being
funded by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), as “unprecedented”,
saying that it had led to the supply of meters to many Nigerian
homes for free.

The first phase, tagged ‘Phase 0’ was launched later than
expected in December 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with a
target of 1 million meters across the country and has yielded about
750,000 meters nationwide in about eight month, the statement
said.

“This is a marked improvement in terms of the speed of
installation of meters compared to its predecessor (the Meter Asset
Provider-MAP programme) which recorded 350,000 meter installations
in just over 18 months. Essentially the Nigerian meter industry has
increased local installation capacity by a multiple of five.

“In preparation for the second phase (known as Phase 1) of the
NMMP, the Nigerian electricity sector regulator, NERC, has
conducted extensive consultations and stakeholder management, and
has revised its metering guidelines. This phase will provide up to
4 million meters and shall also use a similar financing mechanism
as phase 0,” Zakari noted.

According to him, one of the key successes of the NMMP
initiative is how rapidly it has increased private sector interest
in investing in the local meter assembly, manufacturing and
installation space.

In addition, he said that there are now new meter factories in
Lagos and in Kaduna, while the refurbishment of a number of other
defunct metering companies are ongoing.

“This development in the meter assembly space is driven by the
Central Bank’s commitment to support local meter
assembly/manufacturing as only local companies will be allowed to
participate in the bidding process for the upcoming phase of the
programme.

“This promises to increase the job creation impact of the
programme which has already attained appreciable heights with over
10,000 direct jobs created as a result of the phase 0 of the
programme,” Zakari added.

He stated that for Phase 1, a central procurement mechanism to
be overseen and supervised by NERC will be deployed in order to
ensure that meters are secured at the lowest possible cost.

According to him, this is aimed at reaching the goals and
objectives of the national metering programme, noting that the
commencement of the procurement process of Phase 1 has been done
strategically to ensure that there is no gap in meter supply to
customers as the initiative transitions from Phase 0 to Phase
1.

“The Minister of Power has emphasised the administration’s
commitment to eliminate the metering gap by 2023. The continuation
of the NMMP is in line with the federal government’s agreement with
organised labour on electricity sector reform,” he said.

Estimated billing remains one of the challenges of the power
sector in the country, with customer complaints over the years that
they are given “outrageous” estimates beyond what they are supplied
every month by the Discos.