Electricity distribution companies (DisCos) have been ordered by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to replace faulty and obsolete meters for their customers.
NERC, which made the order on Thursday, 4th March, said the order takes effect from same date, adding that its customer enumeration data, which showed that about seven million customers were without meter, also estimated that additional three million meters are obsolete and due for replacement.
According to NERC, the DisCos are expected to embark on an onsite inspection of the meters and remove the the faulty ones for replacement.
NERC also ordered that such customers whose faulty meters are removed must not be giving estimated bills but have their meters changed.
“A. DisCos shall grant priority to the metering of unmetered customers under the
National Mass Metering Program.
“B. DisCos may replace faulty/obsolete meters under the National Mass Metering
Program but these replacements must be done in strict compliance with the “Metering Code and other regulatory instruments of the Commission.
C. DisCos shall inspect meters of metered end-use customers and the replacement notice shall contain the following –
I. The date of inspection.
ii. Name, designation and signature of the officer that inspected the meter.
iii. The fault identified in the meter.
iv. The date for the installation of the replacement meter.
D. The Commission shall be copied on all replacement notices issued to end-use
customers for the purpose of conducting random reviews of the replacement
exercise.
E. New meters must be installed upon the removal of the faulty/obsolete meter and under no circumstances shall the customer be placed on estimated billing on account of the DisCo’s failure to install a replacement meter after the removal of
the faulty/obsolete meter.
F. The customer and DisCo representative shall jointly note the units on the meter
being replaced and the customer must be credited with these units within 48 hours
after the installation of the meter.
G. Customers shall only be billed for loss of revenue where the DisCo establishes meter
tampering, by-pass or unauthorised access as contained in NERC
Order/REG/ 41/2017 on Unauthorised Access, Meter Tampering and Bypass.
H. Activation tokens shall be issued to customers immediately after replacement of the
faulty/obsolete meter.
I. DisCos shall file monthly returns with the Commission on the replacement of
faulty/obsolete meters along with their proposal for the decommissioned meters.
16. This Order may be cited as the Order on the Structured Replacement of
