By YUNUS YUSUF

Some experts in the power sector have commended the Federal Government’s plans to revoke the licences of non-performing distribution companies.

Some of the experts, who spoke in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Lagos, also decried the arbitrary charges by the companies.

NAN reports that on March 6, the Federal Government issued an order asking the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to withdraw licenses of non-performing electricity distribution companies.

Commenting on the development, Mr Chinedu Bosah, the National Coordinator, Coalition for Affordable and Regular Electricity (CARE), said that government’s directive was in order.

Bosah said that the federal government’s decision was a directive from the point of threat than from the point of ensuring efficiency.

He also alleged that some of the companies had shown obvious incapacity to supply electricity to Nigerians.

He added that many communities were in darkness owing to high tariff.

According to him, if the federal government is serious about electricity supply at affordable tariff rates, it should reverse electricity privatisation and bring the whole sector under public ownership and democratic control of workers.

Also, Dr Akinrolabu Olukayode, Chairman of the Customer Consultative Forum of Festac/Satellite Town, Lagos State, alleged that the major setback was from generating companies and Transmission Company of Nigeria.

Olukayode advised that government should break the monopoly in the power sector and allow for flexibility in the operations.

He also urged the federal government to resuscitate the generating turbines which have been incapacitated and rendered redundant by past administrations.

“The distribution companies have their peculiar challenges ranging from estimated billing, slow or bureaucratic approach to customers’ complaints.

“Others include overloaded transformers, energy theft, complicit staff and inaccurate consumption estimation,” he said.

On epileptic power supplies, Olukayode said that states should be allowed to explore their potentials and propensities to generate their energy.

“The best thing is for the electricity act passed into law to take full fledge implementation. We should allow states to develop their generating capacity.

“The economy is dull as we are merely reduced to a consuming people without a corresponding production.

“The collapse of the national grid has led to low power generating capacity which engendered the poor allocation of less than 15 megawatts to my area daily.

“Both residents, small and medium scale businesses are grossly affected and also suffered setbacks too,” he said.

The expert also said that more licences should be given to companies and expatriates to consolidate on the existing generating capacity.

According to him, since the business world is suffering the harsh consequences of the hyper-inflation, it is a loss to any business to run on generating sets with the high cost of petrol.

Olukayode said that the way forward was to get rid of all the challenges to the realisation of constant power supply in Nigeria. (NAN)

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