“You Won’t Load”: Ikeja Electric Asks Customers to Link NINs to Meters By Nov 1 to Receive Units
- Ikeja Electric has asked consumers on its distribution network to link their National Identity Numbers (NIN) before November 1
- The DisCo stated that the consumers with unlinked NINs would not receive energy tokens more than once
- The company issued website links for consumers to link their NINs to their prepaid meters
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Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IE) says all customers must link their National Identity Number (NIN) to their prepaid meters by November 1, 2023, to receive energy tokens.
The distribution firm made the announcement on its official X handle on Thursday, October 19, 2023.
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No consumer will recharge more than once after November 1
The company said linking NIN is necessary to enhance the security and efficiency of the distribution system.
It warned that consumers who do not comply with the directive would not access tokens for energy more than once.
The statement said:
“Effective November 1, 2023, only customers who have linked their NIN will receive two sets of 20-digit tokens required to load energy tokens,” the social media post reads.
“Kindly link your NIN to your meter today by visiting smartkyc.ikejaelectric.com/nin_index.xhtml.”
Reports say customers can link their NIN to their meters by visiting the customer service centres and websites of distribution companies.
Only landlords can link NINs across the IE network
The companies do not charge customers to connect their NINs; customers with linked NINs do not need further action.
Landlords/tenants or occupants who use the prepaid meters can link NINs.
However, Ikeja Electric said only landlords could link NINs to multiple meters.
The company stated that linking NIN ensures that customers’ KYC information is current.
“Please note that linking your NIN to your Meter is to ensure your KYC information with Ikeja Electric is up to date,” the firm added.
In September, the National Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) increased prepaid meter prices, while Ikeja Electric said it was halting further sales and installation of prepaid meters to clear backlogs.
Ikeja Electric is among the distribution companies NERC said achieved 100% remittance to the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Company (NBET).
NERC asks consumers to upgrade meters
In August, NERC alerted electricity consumers to upgrade their prepaid meters, or they won’t recharge them after November next year.
About 5.3 million Nigerian electricity consumers are facing a dilemma and the risk of being unable to recharge their prepaid meters after NERC sounded the alarm on software expiration by November next year.
Some electricity companies have warned their customers that they may be unable to recharge their prepaid meters by the end of 2023.
According to reports, NERC has asked Distribution Companies (DisCos) to help customers upgrade their meters, warning that failure by consumers to upgrade their meters would make them face difficulty recharging in 2014.
FG pays N135bn electricity subsidy to Ikeja Electric, Ibadan Disco, others to stop tariff increase
In an earlier report by Legit.ng, NERC revealed that the federal government paid N135 billion as electricity subsidy in the second quarter of 2023.
The Nigerian government spent the amount to close the revenue generation shortfall in the power sector in the year's second quarter.
The N135.2 billion spent by the government represents an increase of N99.21 billion, a 275% rise compared to the N36 billion it paid in Q1 of 2023, the NERC report indicates.
Source: Legit.ng
