EKEDC expresses concerns over meter rejection by customers

EKEDC expresses concerns over meter rejection by customers

CHIGOZIE AMADI

Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) has expressed concern over the rejection of free prepaid meters by some Band A customers under the Meter Acquisition Fund (MAF) scheme, aimed to address the issue of estimated billing.

In an interview at the Customer Consultative Forum in Ojo, Lagos, Mr Gbadebo Akinyede, EKEDC’s Head of Metering, revealed that while the company had installed about 2,900 free meters for Band A customers, approximately 2,400 instances of rejection had been recorded.

Akinyede emphasised that the meters being offered under the Meter Asset Funds (MAF) scheme were completely free of charge.

“We are surprised to see the high rate of rejection, especially when our installers clearly communicate to customers that these meters are free,” he said.

“The rejection rate is almost equal to the rate of installations, which is concerning.”

In spite of the challenges, Akinyede noted that EKEDC has made significant progress, with about 98 per cent of its backlog of meters successfully installed.

He said that the remaining two per cent of installations were expected to be completed by the end of March.

“Out of the approximately 5,000 cases, we have resolved about 4,800,” Akinyede said, explaining that the delays were primarily due to issues that arose in December.

“Most of these have now been addressed, and the remaining two per cent represents new issues, which we plan to resolve within the month.

Akinyede said that EKEDC was committed to ensuring that all customers benefited from the free meter initiative, which was a key part of the company’s efforts to improve billing accuracy and service delivery.

The Business intelligence(TBI Africa) reports that customers at the forum were drawn from Ojo Business Unit, which covers Isashi, Mabaonu, Afro media and Celestial Market.

Others include Iba town, Iba new site, Agboroko, Igbo-Elerin, Ojo, Alaba, Agric, Okoko, Shibiri, Riverine and Jakande area.