FG Moves To Close 7M Metre Gap, Awards Contract For Installation of 1.4m Smart Metres

ED, TSP, Engr. Ajiboye Oluwagbenga with the DG of BPE Mr Ayodeji Ariyo Gbeleyi during the contract signing ceremony.

The Federal Government, through the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and Electricity Distribution Companies has signed a contract agreement with Chinese consortium, Ningbo Sanxing Medical & Electric Co. Ltd&Ningbo Sanxing Smart Electric Co. Ltd, and Messrs XJ Group Corporation for the supply and installation of 1,437,500 smart meters across the country.

At the contract signing ceremony held recently at the BPE headquarters in Abuja, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of TCN, Engr. Sule Ahmed Abdulaziz, represented by the Executive Director, Transmission Service Provider, Engr. Ajiboye Oluwagbenga, praised the initiative as a significant step in bridging the 7.1 million metre gap in Nigeria.

Abdulaziz said that “the project is part of the Distribution Sector Recovery Programme funded by the World Bank’s $500m facility through the Investment Project Finance arrangement. We are excited with the contract signing. There is a lot of funding issue but with this development, we are certain that when the metres are provided, it will definitely improve our services."

Earlier, the DG of BPE, Mr Ayodeji Ariyo Gbeleyi in his remark noted that the project is part of the Distribution Sector Recovery Programme (DISREP), funded by the World Bank's $500 million facility through the Investment Project Finance (IPF) arrangement, secured in 2021.

Gbeleyi who said that the 1,437,500 metres which includes 1,088,050 single phase metres and 340,451 three phase smart metres and have been allocated to different discos, explained that the project is aimed at improving the financial and technical performance of the DisCos as approved by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission. (NERC).

He maintained that the improvement of the performance of DisCos incorporates the bulk procurement of customers/ retail metres and implementation of Metrr Data Management Systems (MDMS) and, Data Aggregation Platform (DAP), aimed at strengthening governance and transparency of the DisCos amongst other targeted result areas.

According to him, "this intervention to the DisCos, which is being given at a concessionary rate and largely de-risk by the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) is a demonstration of the government’s avowed commitment to transform the Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of Mr. President as well as to meet the 6,000MW target in the Accelerated Stabilisation and Advancement Plan (ASAP), which is a near-term target."

Also speaking at the occasion, the World Bank representative, Mr Bunnu Baba Bukar, said that, “I’m excited that this project started 3 years ago is at a point that things are moving quickly. We expect everybody to play their role to ensure that whatever is expected is done to make the process of implementation seamless".

Reacting on behalf of the distribution companies, the Managing Director of the Ikeja Distribution Companies, Folake Soetan, commended the Federal government and the World Bank for the initiatives, adding when installed, it'll massively improve service delivery. 

The contractors thanked the federal government for the confidence reposed in them, promising never to fail in delivering the project within the stipulated time of four months.