The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, recently clarified that electricity consumers receiving prepaid meters at no upfront cost will have up to a decade to repay the associated expenses.
This clarification directly challenges earlier assertions that customers who pay for their meters would receive reimbursements via energy credits.
According to The PUNCH, addressing the issue during a speech in Ibadan, Minister Adelabu acknowledged the rising cost of meters and cited funding as a significant obstacle.
He emphasized that the Federal Government plans to tackle this issue by securing financing for meter procurement, which will be repaid gradually by consumers.
“We can get funding for this meter and allow the customers to pay over time,” the minister stated, highlighting the government’s approach to easing the financial burden on consumers.
He further explained that once the government begins procuring meters, these will be distributed to consumers, who will then repay the cost in small installments spread over a period of ten years.
“When the government starts procuring meters, we’ll give it to the customers, and we’ll deduct the money over 10 years. In which case, you will not even feel it at all,” Adelabu assured.
To illustrate the minimal impact of these deductions, Adelabu gave an example, noting,b“Probably, if you buy a credit of N5,000, maybe N100 will go into the meter that we have given you. So, that’s what we are trying to do. We bring these meters in and reduce the gap that we have in the meters.”
He also highlighted that both the Federal Government and state governments have collectively raised N100 billion to facilitate the procurement of prepaid meters.
This initiative, referred to as the Presidential Meter Initiative is a concerted effort by the government to address the nationwide shortage of meters.
“Mr. President has set up what we call the Presidential Meter Initiative and set up a Presidential Meeting Council to address this issue. He made me the chairman of this council. The SA on Energy to Mr. President is the secretary of the council. The mandate we have was to procure and install a minimum of 2 million meters on a yearly basis over the next five years,” Adelabu said.
The Minister also revealed that significant progress has been made in securing funding for this ambitious project, with both federal and state governments contributing to the effort.
“Today, we have received, and seen about N100bn fund that will go into the procurement of meters,” he noted.
Additionally, the World Bank has pledged to support Nigeria’s meter procurement efforts, with plans to provide nearly two million meters over the next two years as part of the Distribution Sector Recovery Program.
Adelabu disclosed that $200 million of the $500 million allocated to the DISREP fund would be directed towards meter procurement, a process that has already reached an advanced stage.