The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has directed the electricity distribution companies (Discos) to refund all monies collected from consumers for meters under the scrapped Credited Advanced Payment for Metering Implementation (CAPMI) scheme.
Besides, the regulatory body warned the Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors (ANED) to desist from interfering in any of its policy statements in the sector.
This was disclosed in a communiqué after the commission’s Chairman, Prof. James Momoh’s first meeting with the operators of the Discos in Abuja.
“The meeting re-emphasised the need to uphold customer service standards, especially as it relates to refund of monies collected from customers for meters under the scrapped CAPMI scheme. The Discos were directed to publish a reminder in any two national newspapers that customers who paid for CAMPI yet unmetered should come for refund with details of payment.
Inter-relationships between electricity distribution companies were encouraged but activities of ANED were discouraged. A strict adherence to contract agreement signed by the commission’s licensees (Discos) was re-echoed as the only binding legal entity that should form the continued relationship between the commission and electricity distribution companies” the communique read.
The NERC acknowledged that there are discrepancies in the cut-off dates for payments made to the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc (NBET) by the Discos, and the need to implement a settlement system visible to all parties.
According to the communiqué, there is a need to remove discretionary payments by the Discos, adding that it was unsustainable and could dampen investors’ confidence in the industry.While reassuring its resolve to bring an end to such discretionary remittance, the commission said it would implement a settlement system that would be open to all parties in the market.
NERC charged the Discos to explore options of smart metering technologies to cut down incidences of electricity theft in their distribution networks, as well as resolved that Discos would have to adopt its regulation on estimated metering in their valuation of tariff of their estimated customers.
