DisCos collect N777b revenue in Q1 2022
The 11 electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) collected N777 billion in the first quarter (Q1) of 2022, according to a statement by the Association of Nigerian Energy Distributors (ANED) yesterday.
Its Executive Director, Research and Advocacy, Sunday Oduntan, who issued the statement in Abuja, noted that the high collection was recorded despite various lapses in the industry.
He added that the DisCos have installed 129,352 distribution transformers since the power sector privatisation of 2013.
ANED stated that the DisCos admit their lapses but that the investors and operators remained committed to improving its services. Evidence of this commitment has been in progress as of Quarter One, 2022. The areas include the establishment of a new revenue collection of N777 billion; the installation of 129,352 distribution transformers as of 2020 versus 75,041, in 2013, a 72per cent increase; Increased metering from 2.3 million in 2013 to 4.1 million as of 2020, a 78 per cent increase.
According to him, other feats by the DisCos include a reduction of average Aggregate Technical Commercial & Collection Losses (ATC&C), estimated in excess of 56 per cent, pre-privatisation) to 46.3per cent; increase in the number of registered customers from an estimate of less than 2 million customers, pre-privatisation, to 10.2 million; establishment of 1,035 customer centres and the creation of 32,573 jobs as against the 23,515 during the privatisation.
The association also said the restructuring of the DisCos is being worsened by a resort to violations of the rule of law – expropriation of DisCos outside the framework of the agreements reached under the privatisation of the assets.
It condemned the thuggish “arrest” or abduction of the MD-CEO of the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) by rogue elements of the law enforcement apparatus, in enforcing the expropriation, last Monday, and a court action between the federal government and BEDC on whether the restraining order issued by a Federal High Court against the government on the expropriation, in favor of BEDC, has expired.
