Nigeria’s eleven power distribution companies (Discos) collected N56.1billion in December, the highest ever, on the back of the newly introduced service-based tariff but customers complaints over excessive billing is on the increase.
Several customers took to social media to complain about the especially high bills that were distributed by Discos in December, the same month the Discos recorded their highest revenue yet.
“I was away for all of December and all major appliances were off, and somehow according to @EKEDP my electricity bill was 150k. This is more than even the months I was there. Amazing!” said Stephanie Busari, a journalist wrote Twitter.
Another user said, “The criminal part of this crazy estimated billing is that we don’t enjoy a straight 5-hour power supply yet we’re asked to 138k for using bulbs and fans,” wrote an angry customer on Twitter.
A school proprietor Kumi Yunus, still had huge bills to pay despite shutting down the school in compliance with lockdown rules during the out break of the pandemic last year.
“Patriots I need your help. Today @Ikejaelectric guys came to disconnect the light to my business premises. All through the covid lockdown, I didn’t open for business yet they sent me bills. I decided to pay when I opened for business, I’ve been paying 5k every month.”
Many Nigerians are outraged over excessive billing by Discos and the inability of the regulator to call them to order. To curtail reckless billing practices of Discos, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), placed a limit on how much they could bill some classes of customers on estimated billing last year.
In its order to cap estimated billings which took effect on February 20, NERC ordered that all unmetered R2 and C1 customers basically residential and small business users, shall not pay more than N1,870 per month for energy consumed. Single-phased small users are not to pay more than N200 per month during the transitional period till they are metered.
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Nearly one year later, the order has failed to address the challenge. The capping of estimated billing was determined with indices and assumptions that are inconsistent with Discos’ realities and proposals including incorrect vending data.
The regulation also did not address why many Nigerians cannot get meters to ensure equitable electricity billing and pushes the burden on resolving the problem on the regulated, hence its failure.
Nonetheless, the introduction of the Service Reflective Tariff (SRT) which grouped customers in different tariff bands to be billed according to the number of hours of power supplied daily is leaving unmetered customers worse-off.
Unlike metered customers who do not pay when power is not supplied, they pay a fixed rate regardless of the number of hours power is supplied and the tariff increased having been applied to this fixed rate means they are paying more for darkness.
Under the SRT the customers receiving 20 hours or more pay between N45 and N55 kwh and the poorest people getting less than 4 hours of supply daily and seeing no increase in their tariff.
According to data from Discos principal Accounts, for the past six months, average collections was N45.6billion but collections rose in December, the first full month of the implementation of the Service Reflective Tariff (SRT) for electricity consumers in Bands A – D by over 15 percent more than November collections of N47.7billion on the back of the service-based tariffs.
Analysts say improved liquidity will enhance the ability of Discos to invest in their network to improve service delivery and improved remittance to other market operators which will help the electricity market attract investments.
But their inability to meter millions of customers remain a sore point. The Federal Government in October announced a national metering plan to roll out 1 million meters to customers but enquiries show that many are yet to receive the meters.
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