Electricity Firm Set to Refund 49,000 Customers for Over-Billing, FG Orders NERC to Revoke Licenses
- The Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company (KEDC) has refunded 49,000 over-billed consumers
- The company published the list of beneficiary consumers on its website, stating that the move complies with NERC’s Capping Order
- Also, the Nigerian government directed NERC to withdraw the licences of non-performing distribution companies
Legit.ng’s Pascal Oparada has reported on tech, energy, stocks, investment, and the economy for over a decade.
Kaduna Electric has issued the list of customers who have been refunded after they were over-billed by the company as directed by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
The complete list of 49,000 customers was uploaded to the power distribution firm’s website on Thursday, March 14, 2024, per NERC’s directives.
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NERC's mandates refund of unmetered consumers
According to NERC’s capping order, distribution firms must ensure that unmetered customers are not billed beyond a certain threshold.
NERC’s registrar said the order aligned with the estimated bills for unmetered customers and the measured consumption of metered consumers on the same supply feeder.
A statement by Kaduna Electric said that the refund complied with NERC’s directives on non-compliance with the capping of estimated bills for unmetered consumers from January to September 2023.
Leadership reports that the company had completed credit adjustments to all affected customers as directed by NERC.
The statement said:
“The affected customers will notice a credit adjustment for the cumulative overbilled amount from January to September 2023 on their February 2024 bills, which is being delivered as of now.”
Abdulazeez Abdullahi, the company’s head of corporate communications, stated that the electricity firm is committed to being a disciplined market participant and is ready to comply with all regulations and orders directed by NERC.
NERC had, in January 2024, dissolved the Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company board over unpaid debt.
The development came a few days after the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) threatened to sanction DisCos over electricity load rejection; the commission dissolved the board of Kaduna DisCo over N110 billion debt.
NERC said the dissolution came following the company's inability to meet its obligations, which amounted to N182.16 billion in the last four years.
FG directs NERC to withdraw DisCos' licenses
The development comes as the Nigerian government directed NERC to revoke the licenses of non-performing electricity distribution companies.
BusinessDay reports that the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, gave the order recently during a meeting with the heads of the agencies in Abuja.
Adelabu said the DisCos are not doing enough to improve power supply despite ample power on the national grid and the distribution segment remaining the weakest ink in the supply value chain.
TCN announces date Nigerians will enjoy improved electricity supply
Legit.ng reported that the 53 ongoing power projects funded by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) power intervention fund will be completed by May 2024, the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has announced.
Matthew Ajibade, the TCN program coordinator in charge of the initiative, made this known during a tour of three projects at Ojo, Isolo, and Oworonshoki transmission stations in Lagos on Wednesday, 6 December.
According to Ajibade, the project will improve the ability to transport electricity by over 1,000 megawatts upon completion.
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Source: Legit.ng
