Nigerian govt bans meter installation charges

The Federal Government has banned meter installation charges.

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Electricity distribution companies and installers have been warned not to collect payment for meters.

DisCo officials and installers found extorting customers will be prosecuted.

The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, issued the warning on Thursday during an on-site inspection of newly imported smart meters at APM Terminals, Apapa, Lagos.

He said: “I want to mention that it is unprecedented that these meters are to be installed and distributed to consumers free of charge—free of charge! Nobody should collect money from any consumer. It is an illegality. It is an offence for the officials of distribution companies across Nigeria to request a dime before installation; even the indirect installers cannot ask consumers for a dime.

“It has to be installed free of charge so that billings and collections will improve for the sector.

“The main objective of coming here today is to carry out a physical on-site inspection of shipments of smart meters that the Federal Government has imported under the World Bank-funded Distribution Sector Recovery Programme. This programme is supporting the Federal Government to import a total of about 3.4 million meters in two batches; the first batch is 1.43 million meters, out of which we have received close to about a million meters. Currently, almost 150,000 meters have already been installed across all distribution companies in the country.

“And what we have today is close to 500,000 meters that we just received. They are all smart meters, and I believe that the journey of completely eliminating the meter gap in the Nigerian power sector has just begun,” Adelabu said, even as he expressed dissatisfaction with the pace of metering.

Adelabu was optimistic that in a couple of years, every household, business, and institution would be fully metered so that billings and collections in the power sector would become more transparent, fair, and just. He added that it would also improve the readiness of electricity consumers to pay their bills, leading to improved liquidity in the sector.

“I’m quite excited and elated with what’s happening because it’s unprecedented. This is the first time in the history of this country that a government will be importing and locally buying this number of meters to ensure that the power sector is completely transformed. This is like walking the talk. Our target reform in the sector is not just verbal. Nigerians can see that this is real; it’s not just a promise of the tongue.

“We said it is free. We are not saying this behind closed doors. We are telling Nigerians that the distribution and installation of these meters in every location is free of charge, and it is declared an offence—an illegality—for any DisCo official or installer to request money from the beneficiaries of these meters. We will track and monitor this installation. We also await tip-offs. We have the regulatory commission (NERC), which has offices in some of these locations, and the state regulatory authorities also have offices in each state.

“We are going to open a customer complaint desk whereby, if you notice any such requests for illegal money, you report it, and the authorities will follow up. We are not leaving the installation to the DisCos alone; we’re also creating an interface between the installers and consumers to accelerate the pace of installation. We have some issues with the data and addresses of unmetered customers. We are working hand-in-hand with the DisCos to ensure clean data so that we can accelerate installation.

“We also want to maintain a register whereby unmetered customers can register their names. Once we have a list, we will validate it with the DisCos, improving the pace of installation. We are looking for confirmed cases of requests for money by any DisCo official or installer. Nigerians will know what we can do, and it will serve as a deterrent for others not to commit such an offence or illegality. That’s the plan.

“Extortion is not allowed, but there must be confirmed cases of such extortion, and the officials involved—no matter how high—will be prosecuted. It will be publicised and serve as a deterrent to others with similar intentions. We will not allow that. This is a government effort, and no activity of a DisCo or installer should frustrate government efforts to ensure that life is made easy for Nigerians and that we have a stable, reliable, and functional power sector,” he said.