AEDC wants FG to waive import duties on meters

The Abuja Electricity Distribution (AEDC) has appealed to the federal government to reduce the 45 per cent import duties on meters to aid effective supply to customers.

AEDC Managing Director, Ernest Mupwaya, said this during an interactive session between the AEDC executive management team and consumers in Abuja on Thursday.

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Mupwaya said import duties of 45 per cent on meters will bring in more revenue into the treasury, stating that “but, in terms of thinking holistically, we believe as DisCos, that the import duties should be waived for a period of bringing in meters as they have become important.

“If the meters are flooded in the environment, it means any customer who comes to say I do not believe in my estimated bill, the first thing is to plant a meter there.

“This means that the customer will pay what he consumes, he will be happy. No matter the arithmetic you do without a meter, you cannot convince the customer, so that import duty for us is an issue in which we must have one voice that it should be waived for the good of the economy.”

He said that the meter is a game changer as it brought in harmony with customers, arguing that beyond metering the customers, the AEDC must meter its transformers and lines because this helps to manage critical equipment.

The chief executive said that the AEDC has successfully metered 81, 533 customers under the Meter Asset Provider (MAP).

Speaking on tariff, Mupwaya said increase in tariff would guarantee mass investments in electricity and improve service delivery to customers.

“Without a decent tariff, you cannot improve the service and meters which are very key to improving collection. To win the confidence of customers that are paying for what they consume, tariff is very important to unlock the needed resources to transform the sector,’’ he submitted.

He noted that government’s support on tariff would drop from 54 per cent to 29 per cent, leaving 71 per cent for the customers, while the current tariff is 46 per cent because government support is 54 per cent, bringing the total market remittance to 100 per cent.