Eko DisCo laments government agencies’ N144bn unpaid electricity bills

Rekhiat Momoh, acting Managing Director of the Eko Electricity Distribution Company, has revealed that the company was being owed N144 billion by ministries, departments, and agencies in its area of operation.

Momoh disclosed the outstanding debt during a visit by the House of Representatives Committee on Privatisation and Commercialisation to the company’s headquarters in Lagos.

The acting MD said the Nigerian military, the police, and other state government agencies have refused to pay their electricity debts, thus, posing a challenge for the DisCo’s revenue and operations.

Momoh said that over 700,000 of its customers have been metered, and plans are underway to procure an additional 92,000 meters in collaboration with the Federal Government’s Distribution Sector Recovery Programme.

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She also noted that EKEDC has made substantial investments in technology, meters, and transformers, “EKEDC is the only DisCo that fulfils its monthly obligations remittance to the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading company.”

Meanwhile, Hamisu Ibrahim, the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Privatisation and Commercialisation, said the high rate of electricity theft in the country.

During an oversight visit to EKEDC, Ibrahim pledged the committee’s commitment to work with other relevant House committees to draft legislation aimed at curbing electricity theft.

Ibrahim called for increased collaboration between the committee and electricity companies to enhance power supply efficiency.

He highlighted that such cooperation would help the committee understand the challenges facing power companies and provide appropriate legislative solutions.

He further noted that the House had already passed a motion for the expedited recovery of debts owed by Ministries, Departments, and Agencies to power companies.

Another committee member, Decour Damnemunene, raised concerns about the classification of customers under Band A, which he said has led to many consumers not paying for the electricity they use.