DisCos Ordered to Replace Faulty Meters – NERC

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) mandates electricity distribution companies (DisCos) to replace faulty meters at no cost to consumers.

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission has declared that electricity distribution companies are responsible for replacing faulty customer meters at no cost.

The commission announced this in a notice made public on Monday.

NERC has acknowledged that certain DisCos have directed customers to apply and pay for the replacement of faulty and outdated meters in their franchise regions. NERC stated that this directive violates Commission’s Order No. NERC/246/2021, which addresses the Structured Replacement of Faulty and Obsolete End-use Customer Meters within the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry.

The Order specifies that customers with meters must not be involuntarily switched to estimated billing.

If a customer’s meter is deemed obsolete or faulty by any DisCo, it is the DisCo’s responsibility to replace the meter at no cost, as long as the fault was not caused by the customer.

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 The Commission reaffirms its dedication to safeguarding customers’ interests and rights by upholding established regulatory standards and imposing penalties for non-compliance on its licensees.

“We encourage customers to report any instances where a DisCo fails to comply with the Order,” it stated.

This is in accordance with the recent directive from the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), instructing Ikeja and Eko electricity distribution companies (IKEDC and EKEDC) to immediately halt all activities associated with the planned replacement of Unistar meters that may be disregarded.

The Commission declared that the Ikeja and Eko DisCos are not permitted to withdraw or replace the Unistar meters without complete compliance with NERC’s Order on the Structured Replacement of Faulty and Obsolete End-user Customer Meters in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (Order No. NERC/246/2021).