Michael EBOH

Nine months after acquiring the unbundled assets of the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria, PHCN, the new investors have attributed their inability to improve on power supply situation in the country to lack of understanding of the workings of the sector.

Since takeover, the distribution companies have failed to make any positive impact on improving the power situation in the country. They have, instead, been concentrating on lobbying the Federal Government to increase electricity tariffs.

With the handover to the new investors, power situation in Nigeria worsened, with power supply dropping to as low as 1,500 megawatts, MW, in certain periods.
As at last week, power available was put at 3,123.70 MW dropping from a peak of 3,136.30 MW.

The investors in the distribution assets, told Sweetcrude that they spent the first six months after the acquisition, learning the workings of the sector, a development which negatively affected the supply of electricity to households in the Nigeria.

In addition, the electricity distribution companies also identified vandalism of their facilities, harassment of their staff, electricity theft and low supply of power from the generation companies as factors which impacted their ability to ensure improved power supply.

Managing Director of Ikeja Electricity Distribution, IKEDC, Mr. Abiodun Ajifowabaje, disclosed that on learning the ropes, the new investors are now settling down into making investment decisions.
He blamed the low power situation on inadequate supply from the national grid, saying that IKEDC currently gets an average of 35 per cent to 40 per cent of its maximum demand on daily basis from the grid.

He noted that despite its recent investments in upgrading its facilities, energy has been a major challenge to the company, adding that the company only got about 345 MW against 1,257 MW maximum demand.
Effect of vandalism, theft, others

Also, Mr. Oladele Amoda, Managing Director, Eko Electricity Distribution Company, EKEDC, cited the shortfall in gas supply and frequent vandalism of gas pipelines, transmission infrastructure, transformers, energy theft, and a host of others, as compounding the situation.

He said that average power demand for the EKEDC is 700MW, while the average load allocation from the national grid was only 290 MW, thereby making it impossible to meet customers needs.
On his part, the Deputy Managing Director, Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company, IEDC, Mr. John Darlington, decried the frequent picketing of the company by former staff of the defunct PHCN.

He called for urgent steps to check the frequent picketing, saying that it portends grave danger for investors in the power sector.
He also called on the government to take steps to make the generation and distribution power companies to be financially viable to enable them undertake aggressive investments in power infrastructure.

Darlington said financial viability of the power companies can be achieved through a cost-reflective tariff structure that recognises current market situation as well as undertakes sustainable investment in the transmission network to deliver generated capacity to distribution companies without constraints.