The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has granted 69 firms permits to fund purchase, installation and replacement of meters to meet the 11 electricity distribution companies (Discos) metering gap and obligations to their customers.
The grants which were sequel to the commission’s approval of the Meter Asset Provider (MAP) Regulations 2018, were intended to facilitate closure of the wide metering gap in the Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) within three years.
Under the inscription of ‘No Objection’, the new scheme is to qualify intending investors to participate in the meter procurement process in NESI which was launched in March this year.
In May this year, 22 firms were announced by the electricity regulatory commission for the process which as at the end of July 2018 had grown to 69.
The MAP regulation, according to NARC, mandates electricity distribution companies (DISCOS) to engage meter assets providers who fund purchase, installation and replacement of meters to meet Discos metering obligations to their customers. This is to ensure that all electricity customers are metered thereby reducing incidences of estimated electricity billing to the barest minimum.
The commission said it arrived at the number of the firms, having conducted due diligence on the supporting documents to the applications submitted by interested investors, granted successful applicants ‘No Objection’ to participate in the procurement process for meter assets provision in accordance with section 8 subsection 4 of the Meter Assets Providers Regulations, 2018.
The Meter Asset Provider Regulations is aimed at the elimination of estimated billing and its attendant challenges in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry as well as close the metering gap in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry within three years of coming into effect.
Speaking on the new regulation, the Chairman, Momas Electricity Meter Manufacturing Company Limited and one of the permit holders, Mr Kola Balogun, described the new government’s policy as laudable.
“I see the MAP scheme as something laudable and capable of addressing the shortfall in the financial involvement in the metering sub-sector. I think it is a welcome idea but my worry is that often, we have a good policy but implementation has been an issue. So, I pray the MAP regulation will have the desired impact as designed in the book”, he said.
He noted that with the nation’s over five million metering gap, if the metering firms are adequately funded, in the next five years, would be filled.
Some of the meter provider firms are Huawei Technology company Nigeria Limited; Bilview Energy Limited; Chintech Electro Nigeria Limited; Holley Metering Limited; Meron Nigeria Limited; Integrated Power Limited; MBH Power Limited; Trimani Engineering Limited; Sapropel Energy resources Limited; Megawatt Distribution International Limited; Unistar Hi-Tech Systems Limited; MOMAS Electricity Meters Manufacturing Com[pany Limited; Imperial Infrastructure Development Company Limited; Ratio Consulting Limited.
