JOS DISCO TO SPEND N12.4B ON NETWORK, METERS

The Management of the Jos Electricity Distribution Company (JEDC), has cautioned its customers against making payments for installation of prepaid meters. It said customers within its network coverage in Bauchi, Gombe, Benue and Plateau should not make any form of payment for the installation as it was free of charge. Mr Nasir Faskari, the Meter Asset Provider (MAP) desk officer, JEDC franchise area, stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Jos. Faskari urged customers to report any of its personnel who asked for fees for installation of the prepaid meter. He further said the process of acquiring a meter with the company, entailed the opening of an account to register the client’s details. “The procedure for acquiring meters doesn’t exceed 24 hours and it’s also free of charge.” According to him, the client is meant to have the form filled and stamped by a licensed electrical contractor who wired the house to certify that the wiring of the house or structure is up to standard. He pointed out that after the acquisition of the account with the company, the client is to subscribe to the Meter Asset Provider (MAP), a programme initiated by the Federal Government for customers who want to acquire meters. The officer said that a customer obtaining a single-phased meter would pay N 88,000 only, while a customer acquiring a three-phased meter was expected to pay N154,000 only. According to him, the company in a bid to be more proactive, ensures that the customer gets the prepaid meter within three days after making payment as they are readily available. He explained that the government had mandated the company to pay the customers for the meter, however, the company doesn’t give the clients the cash. “We give the cash to customers in the form of free energy tokens once every month, the customer vends until the N88,000 or N 154,000 is exhausted.” Faskari stated that in the eventuality the meters and vending monitors purchased under the MAP scheme got spoilt from no fault of the customer, and fell within the warranty period, the customer would have the meter or monitor replaced immediately at no cost. The officer disclosed that the meters had a warranty of 10 to 12 years. The MAP scheme commenced in April 2023 in Plateau.

To enhance efficiency in its operations, the Board of Directors of Jos Electricity Distribution Plc has promised to make more investments in the company's network. Also, a new partner - GRM has been brought on board to help in the reduction of the company's ATC & C losses. This disclosure was made during the unveiling of the new business partner - GRM to the Management and staff of the company at the corporate headquarters in Jos last Thursday, (21/02/2024). The Chairman of the Board of Directors, Alhaji Ibrahim Sani Bello who made the disclosure said that the investment has become necessary to move the company forward. According to him, without the necessary investments in the network, the achievability of the ATC and C reduction would be a mirage. He explained that the company currently loses not less than five billion naira every month stressing that the Board of Directors has directed that the ugly trend be halted and reversed immediately. He disclosed further that, "NERC has brought out a new order and the implication of this is that even the salary that you are enjoying today may become a mirage if you do not work assiduously to reverse the ugly trend". To stem the tide, the Board chairman called for concerted efforts and strategy that could galvanise the company to success. "Please, endeavour to redouble your efforts towards the realization of the N5Bn. You have the capabilities. You have the capacities. The Board is willing to support you and therefore, you should take advantage of the Board gesture to do the needful ", he said. He disclosed that "Sooner or later, all the Regions would be made a quasi-company of its own as they will be operating as a company within a company". Earlier, in his remarks, the Chief Operating Officer, Alhaji Mamanlafia Umar who stood in for the Managing Director, Engr Abdu Bello Mohammed thanked the Board for their support in administering the company. He said that the Management and staff of the company were poised to move the company forward from its current quagmire.