General

MAP: DisCos Process 250,000 Applications for Prepaid Meters

Published

6 years ago

17/08/2019

By Dipo Olowookere

Not less than 250,000 applications for prepaid meters have been received and processed so far by distribution companies (DisCos) across the country under the Meter Asset Provider (MAP) Regulation of 2018.

The MAP policy was created by federal government through the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to close the current metering gap of about 5.3 million consumers.

Nigeria’s Vice President, Mr Yemi Osinbajo, while speaking at the commissioning projects of Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) in Abeokuta on Thursday, August 15, 2019, said efforts were being made to ensure all unmetered electricity consumers are reached.

“On May 1 2019, MAPs, commenced meter rollout; over 250,000 applications have been received and processed by DisCos to date and of course, that is then supposed to be forwarded to MAPs for installation.

“This figure is expected to quadruple by the end of 2019, and double by the end of 2020, largely closing the current metering gap of about 5.3 million consumers,” the Vice President said.

However, he stressed that the DisCos were underperforming, saying that they lack the capacity to supply power to end users because of infrastructure.

“Despite the availability of 8,000MW of generation and 7,000MW of transmission capacity, the lack of DisCos’ infrastructure to absorb and deliver grid power to end users has largely restricted generation to an average of about 4,000MW and sometimes falling below 4,000MW.

“Apart from the lack of infrastructure is the inability of DisCos, first, to provide distribution assets generally and also metering, and you have heard what the MD of TCN said about the unavailability of distribution assets, there is also the unavailability to provide metering to consumers.

“In resolving this issue, the Federal Government stepped in through the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission’s (NERC) Meter Asset Provider (MAP) Regulation of 2018. This is essentially regulation to provide metering, through independent or third parties to consumers all across Nigeria,” he said.

According to the Vice President, “In the past few years, resolving the power supply problem has been top priority for the Federal Government of Nigeria.”

He said, “Today, we have about 13,427MW of installed capacity, and an available capacity of about 8,342MW. This was achieved through the efforts of government and its private sector partners in the rehabilitation and commissioning of turbines in Shiroro, Egbin, Delta Power, Sapele and Gbarain.

“Before the end of the year, new generation is expected from Gbarain and an extra 115 MW; Kashimbilla (40 MW); Afam III Fast Power (240 MW); Gurara (30 MW); Dadin Kowa (29 MW); and Kaduna (215 MW).”

Mr Osinbajo stated that, “In the long term, several solar plants will come on stream. The national grid already has the capacity to transmit 7,000MW, an increase from less than about 5,000MW in 2015 and this is due to the completion and improvement of several transmission projects.

“We have been told by the MD of NDPHC, Mr Chiedu Ugbo, the completion of projects already done by TCN, like the Ikot Ekpene switching station and the completion of the Ikot Ekpene-Ugwuaji-Makurdi-Jos loop, which was done by the NDPHC in 2017.

“But distribution capacity in the 11 DisCos are significantly low, hovering at around 4,000MW on average with a peak of about 5,400MW.”

He described the commissioning of Thursday’s projects as “an important part of the federal government’s efforts to improve the supply and quality of power to homes and businesses in Nigeria.”

According to him, it was part of efforts to open up the space for private sector into the power sector to open up the market to satisfy energy consumers in the country.

“The whole idea of it is to create a regime whereby there can be more willing-buyer-willing seller arrangements. It is in my view completely impossible, to satisfy Nigeria’s power demands from the national grid alone.

“There must be independent power suppliers and this why we have all these regulations for micro-grid and other willing-buyer-willing-seller arrangements and that is the way by which we can go forward and ensure that we are able to serve many of the unserved and underserved communities that we have today.

“These polices when fully implemented, will enable the opening up of the market to new investors in generation, transmission and distribution infrastructure, transacting directly with each other, to serve willing customers and this is the way which the Federal Government will proceed to ensure that we increase some more opportunities to existing DisCos and to other investors who may wish to serve Nigeria’s huge power market, which of course, at the moment is terribly underserved,” he said.

Mr Osinbajo said, “Federal Government is committed to ensuring that we have adequate power supply both in our home and also in our various places of business.

“Power supply is the life blood of any economy and we will remain committed to ensuring that power supply is adequate everywhere.

“Just as you heard, it is certainly not going to be a short walk, but as we have seen, from all what we have heard so far, there so much to be done and we are committed to doing it.

General

EFCC Launches Manhunt for Eight CBEX Promoters

Published

1 day ago

26/04/2025

Dipo Olowookere

By Dipo Olowookere

Eight persons, comprising four Nigerians and four foreigners, believed to have promoted the failed Ponzi scheme, Crypto Bridge Exchange (CBEX), in Nigeria have been declared wanted by the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).

Recall that a few weeks ago, several investors lost their hard-earned funds in the investment scheme, which the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said it did not authorise.

The platform crashed and went away with investors’ money after it made it impossible for them to withdraw their funds. It later asked them to pay an activation fee of $100 and $200, depending on what was in their wallets.

The crashing of CBEX triggered attacks on its offices, especially in Ibadan, Oyo State, by aggrieved investors, whose funds’ were trapped in CBEX.

Already, the EFCC has swung into action, arraigning the promoters of the investment scheme in court, though four of them are at large.

In a notice on Friday night, the agency said it was looking for the fugitive, asking members of the public with information about their whereabouts to come forward to aid their arrest.

The anti-money laundering organisation listed the wanted persons as Seyi Oloyede, Emmanuel Uko, Adefowowa Oluwanisola, and Adefowora Abiodun Olaonipekun, and listed Johnson Okiroh Otieno, Israel Mbaluka, Joseph Michiro Kabera, and Serah Michiro as the foreign accomplices.

“The public is hereby notified that the persons whose photographs appear above are suspected foreign accomplices wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for fraud allegedly perpetrated on an online trading platform called Crypto Bridge Exchange (CBEX)

“Anybody with useful information as to their whereabouts should please contact the Commission in its Ibadan, Uyo, Sokoto, Maiduguri, Benin, Makurdi, Kaduna, llorin, Enugu, Kano, Lagos, Gombe, Port Harcourt or Abuja offices or through 08093322644; its e-mail address: info@efcc.gov.ng or the nearest Police Station and other security agencies,” the notice signed by its spokesman, Mr Dele Oyewale, stated.

CBEX promoters

General

Nigeria Moves to Revive Textile Sector With Development Board

Published

2 days ago

25/04/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigeria’s National Economic Council (NEC) has approved the establishment of Cotton, Textile and Garment Development Board as part of efforts to drive non-oil revenues.

This was disclosed by the Governor of Imo State, Mr Hope Uzodinma, while briefing State House Correspondents at the end of the 149th NEC meeting chaired by the Vice-President, Mr Kashim Shettima, on Thursday at Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He explained that in order to make the board function effectively, the council approved a proposal for Public-Private Partnership (PPP).

Mr Uzodinma stated that the chairman of the board would be selected from the private sector, adding that the body would be funded from import levies on textiles.

“The National Economic Council, among others things, received a representation from the members and leadership of Cotton, Textile and Garment Development Forum.

“These are private sector operatives who are into the cotton business, garment and textiles and the presentation highlighted their proposal on how to revitalise the cotton industry in Nigeria.

“The council endorsed the presentation and approved the establishment of a National and regional Offices for the board in each of the six geopolitical zones for proper coordination,” said Mr Uzodinma.

On his part, Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa said the council also received proposal from the Minister of Livestock Development on acceleration strategy for the livestock industry.

He said the presentation was on on a plan to transformation the livestock industry between 2025 and 2030, stating that the strategy was built on the national livestock growth acceleration plan, which is expected to transform the sector to create jobs, export products and serve as an engine room for internally generated revenue.

“The projection is that the strategy will generate between $74 billion down and $90 billion in that sector by the year 2035.

“It will be a direct partnership with the state governors, the private sector and foreign investors under a very sound federal regulatory umbrella,” said Mr Diri.

He added that the investment would be prioritised into five key pillars between 2025 and 2026, saying the pillars are: animal health and zones control, feed and further development, water resources management, statistics and information and livestock value chain development.

General

NIMASA to Disburse $700m Cabotage Fund Within Four Months

Published

3 days ago

24/04/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has announced plans to commence the disbursement of the $700 million Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund (CVFF) within the next four months.

Last week, the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Mr Adegboyega Oyetola, instructed the maritime regulator to initiate the long-awaited disbursement process for the fund.

This directive marked a significant shift from over two decades of administrative stagnation and ushers in a new era of strategic repositioning of Nigeria’s indigenous shipping.

Speaking on Wednesday, NIMASA’s Director General, Mr Dayo Mobereola, providing a timeline for the disbursement said this will happen within the next four months, which by calculation, is August 2025.

He made the announcement during an oversight visit by the House of Representatives Committee on Maritime Safety, Education, and Administration in Abuja, according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

“We are acting in accordance with the directive of the Minister to ensure indigenous shipowners finally have access to this critical funding. The guidelines have been streamlined based on the Minister’s approval, so beneficiaries can access the funds within three to four months,” he said.

“To effectively manage the $700 million intervention fund, the number of Primary Lending Institutions (PLIs) has been expanded from five to twelve.”

The CVFF, established under the Coastal and Inland Shipping (Cabotage) Act of 2003, was designed to empower Nigerian shipping companies through access to structured financing for vessel acquisition. However, successive administrations failed to operationalize the fund—until now.

According to Minister Oyetola, the disbursement of the CVFF will represent not just the release of funds, but a profound commitment to empowering Nigerian maritime operators, bolstering national competitiveness, and fostering sustainable economic development.

“This is not just about disbursing funds. It’s about rewriting a chapter in our maritime history. For over 20 years, the CVFF remained a dormant promise. Today, we are bringing it to life—deliberately, transparently, and strategically,” he stated.

NIMASA, in alignment with the Minister’s directive, has already issued a Marine Notice inviting eligible Nigerian shipping companies to apply.

Qualified applicants can access up to $25 million each at competitive interest rates to acquire vessels that meet international safety and performance standards.

The fund will be administered in partnership with carefully selected and approved Primary Lending Institutions (PLIs), ensuring professional and efficient disbursement.