BY CHRIS OCHAYI

ABUJA: To boost transparency in the ongoing power sector reform, the Federal Government has inaugurated an automated solution platform to manage the processes of generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity as well as payment schedule within the industry.

Besides, it has issued a marching order to the Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, to transmit 6,000Megawatts ( MW) of electricity by December this year.

The technology, code-named the Onem-NIBSS/Power Collect Operators and Control Centre, and developed by the TCN’s market operators is aimed at reducing human interaction and its attendant bias in the payment processes in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry , NESI.

The Nigeria Interbank Settlement System (NIPSS)/PowerCollect Operations and Command Centre, was inaugurated last week in Abuja, to clear the outstanding balance of N11 billion that was due to market operators in June.

The Minister of Power, Prof Chinedu Nebo, while inaugurating the system noted that a lot went into developing the platform, and urged the market participants to support the success of the project.

He said the visibility and transparency the project will bring into the industry are key components that will ensure success, adding that the initiators, the Market Operators have developed a world class solution for the sector.

Nebo also said, “Power Collect represents technology transformation for the sector, which includes command Center for real-time visibility to the health of the Nigeria grid, visibility into all the key infrastructure-meters, transformers, transmission lines, meters across the market.” Emphasising on the significance of the technology to the sector, Nebo said, “when the market operator started working on this, we were excited. When I came into power sector, I wondered why I couldn’t stay in my office and observe what was happening along the entire value chain of power sector.
“That is the power delivery system in the country. And that is how the situation was whenever any question was asked about any particular point on the value chain one will be able to respond intelligently. Very soon, the idea came up, but I did not know that the idea will go as far as integrating the technical, regulatory, financial aspects all in one package.”
Commending the market operator for the hybrid system, he said, “it is good from time to time to see that in Nigeria, we can also do something wonderful. So when we talk about the Nigerian factor, it is not only in the negative. There can also be a positive Nigerian factor.”
In her remarks, the Managing Director of Market Operator, Mrs. Ngozi Osunbo, said that the platform is a globally accepted solution but tailored for the Nigerian market for its specific problems.

She described the solution as automated revenue lifecycle management system that will enable the market operators and all the players in the electricity value chain ensure equitable revenue collection and splitting.

She added that it will give the market operators the tools it required for market price stability.