The federal government, on Thursday, January 22, banned Electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) and installers from collecting any form of payment for meters, warning that DisCo officials and installers found extorting customers would be prosecuted.
The minister of power, Adebayo Adelabu, issued the warning during an on-site inspection of newly imported smart meters at APM Terminals, Apapa, Lagos.
Adelabu said the meters were procured under the World Bank–funded Distribution Sector Recovery Programme (DISREP) and must be installed for consumers free of charge, stressing that any demand for money would be treated as an offence.
The minister, who was received at the Apapa port command of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) by the Area Controller, Emmanuel Oshoba, expressed happiness over the importation of another tranche of 500,000 smart meters under DISREP.
He said the meters would be distributed to all electricity customers, regardless of their tariff band.
Adelabu said, “I want to mention that it is unprecedented that these meters are to be distributed and installed free of charge. Nobody should collect money from any consumer.
“It is illegal. It is an offence for officials of distribution companies across Nigeria to request a dime before installation.
“Even indirect installers must not ask consumers for money.
“These meters must be installed free of charge so that billing and collections can improve across the sector.”
He said the purpose of the visit was to carry out a physical inspection of shipments of smart meters imported by the federal government under DISREP.
He added, “This programme is supporting the federal government to import about 3.4 million meters in two batches.
“The first batch is 1.43 million meters, out of which close to one million have already been received.
“Currently, about 150,000 meters have been installed across all distribution companies in the country, and what we have received today is close to 500,000 meters.”
Adelabu noted that all the meters are smart meters, adding that the journey to fully eliminate the metering gap in the Nigerian power sector has just begun, while expressing dissatisfaction with the pace of metering.
He expressed optimism that within a few years, every household, business, and institution would be fully metered, making billing and collections in the power sector more transparent, fair, and just.
He added that the initiative would improve consumers’ willingness to pay their electricity bills and enhance liquidity in the sector.
He noted, “I am quite excited because this is unprecedented. This is the first time in Nigeria’s history that a government is importing and locally procuring this number of meters to transform the power sector.
“This is walking the talk. Nigerians can see that this reform is real; it is not just a promise.
“We have declared that the distribution and installation of these meters are free of charge, and it is an offence for any DisCo official or installer to demand money from beneficiaries.”
Adelabu said the government would track installations nationwide and establish customer complaint desks for reporting extortion, adding that the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and state regulatory authorities would support enforcement.
He warned that confirmed cases of extortion would lead to prosecution, regardless of the status of the individuals involved, and that such cases would be publicised as a deterrent.
“The meters will be distributed to all categories of customers. We are not discriminating. The issue of Band A, Band B, or Band C is temporary. The meters will reach everyone,” he stressed.
Meanwhile, the Director-General (DG) of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Ayo Gbeleyi, said the bureau coordinates the implementation of DISREP on behalf of the federal government and serves on the boards of all 11 DisCos.
Gbeleyi said the NERC would soon issue a circular prescribing protocols DisCos must follow to ensure unhindered meter installations.
He added that the meters were manufactured to the specific requirements of each DisCo and embedded with anti-theft technology, noting that a meter configured for one DisCo cannot be installed in another’s network.
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