FG Borrows N120bn from World Bank to Purchase 1.25m Prepaid Metres at Discounted Consumer Rate
- World Bank is financing the purchase of 1.25 million metres opened on Thursday, 5th October
- It is expected that the supply of smart meters to the Discos will end the estimated billing
- This comes after President Tinubu ordered power companies to stop estimated billing
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The World Bank is funding the purchase of 1.25 million metres for $155 million. The amount equals N119.74 billion at Thursday's official exchange rate of N772.54/$.
According to Punch Report, the bids submitted by interested parties for the procurement were opened on Thursday, 5th October 2023.
According to senior government officials, the decision was made in response to President Bola Tinubu's order to stop power distribution corporations nationwide from billing electricity consumers on an estimated basis.
Source: UGC
Metres to be discounted
To achieve widespread deployment of Phase 2 of the government's National Mass Metering Programme, the metres were to be provided to the Discos at discounted prices.
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Tukur Bamalli, Assistant General Manager of the World Bank Project Implementation Unit of the Transmission Company of Nigeria, stated that the Federal Government was committed to completing the metering scheme on the sidelines of the bid opening process in Abuja.
He announced the closing of the submission of bids and the opening ceremony for the supply and installation of smart meters. According to him, the bids have already been received.
He added that President Bola Tinubu decided that estimated bills should be abolished by making sure meters are supplied to the 11 distribution companies.
According to Bamalli, Phase 0, Phase 1, and Phase 2 are the three phases of the NMMP. He said this is happening under the bulk metering program's Phase 2.
“We are procuring 1.25 million meters, funded by the World Bank. The supply of smart meters to the distribution companies to end estimated billing is in phases. This programme is Phase 2, which started in February 2021 and the loan became effective in February 2023. So we have already received the bids and very soon the contracts will be signed.”
Since the bids had only recently been filed, he stated that the price of the metres would be established following the review process. He also added that the price of the metres would be decreased to enable its mass purchase.
Legit.ng had earlier reported that the power regulatory agency in Nigeria has finally approved an upward review of the cost of metres in the country.
in a related report, Ikeja Electric, says it will only accept new orders from customers for prepaid meters once it has cleared the backlog of requests.
NERC Warns Prepaid Meter Users to Update Before November 2024
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has advised all electricity consumers in Nigeria using prepaid meters to update their meters before November 24, Legit.ng reported.
The Commission released the message to prepaid meter users through its official Twitter account on Tuesday, August 22, 2023, urging electricity consumers to take note of the deadline.
Legit.ng earlier reported that 171,107 prepaid meters were installed across Nigeria in the first quarter of 2023, according to NERC's first quarter report.
Source: Legit.ng
