Adedapo Adesanya
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has announced the approval for an upward adjustment in the prices of prepaid electricity meters within the nation.
According to a circular dated September 5, 2023, signed by the Chairman, Mr Sanusi Garba, and the Commissioner of Legal, Licensing, and Compliance, Mr Dafe Akpeneye, a single-phase prepaid meter will now be purchased at N81,975.16, a 40 per cent increase from the previous N58,661.69, while the cost of a three-phase prepaid meter has been raised to N143,836.10 from the previous N109,684.36, a 31 per cent hike.
The circular explained that the motivation behind the price adjustment was to create an equitable and sensible meter pricing system that would be fair to both Meter Asset Providers (MAPs) and end-user customers.
NERC said the new pricing system will “Ensure MAP’s ability to recover reasonable costs associated with meter procurement and maintenance while ensuring that their pricing structure allows for a viable return on investment.
“Evaluate the affordability of meter services for consumers, aiming to prevent excessive pricing that could burden end-users.
It will also “ensure that MAPs are able to provide meters to end-use customers in the prevailing economic realities.”
Recall that last Wednesday, Business Post reported that electricity consumers may have to pay more to acquire prepaid meters because of foreign exchange and rising inflation.
One of the electricity distribution companies (DisCos), Ikeja Electric, suspended the payment for meters via its online platform.
“We apologize for the recent delay in metering due to low stock from our Meter Asset Providers (MAPs) caused by exchange rate and inflation challenges.
“As a result, online meter payments are temporarily suspended.
“We are actively working with our MAPs to swiftly resolve this and resume the metering process. Thank you for your understanding,” a message from Ikeja Electric to its customers last week read.
