The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has said that it is considering increasing the price of prepaid meters in the coming days.
The commission blamed the proposed increase on the high cost of production faced by meter manufacturers.
Sources say that the manufacturers have ceased issuing invoices to Distribution Companies (Discos) in anticipation of an upward price revision by the NERC.
According to them, the increase in prices is directly related to the foreign exchange crisis affecting the economy, leading to increased production costs and inflationary pressures on manufacturers.
Recall that in September 2023, NERC reviewed the price of prepaid meter in a circular marked NERC/2023/020, and jointly signed by Sanusi Garba, the commission’s chairman ’and Dafe Akpeneye, its commissioner, legal, licencing, and compliance.
The commission said a single-phase meter will now cost N81,975.16 instead of the previous price of N58,661.69.
Similarly, the price of a three-phase meter was increased to N143,836.10 from N109,684.36.
NERC, the sector regulator, approves the cost of prepaid meters, most of which are imported into the country as semi-knocked down units and assembled locally for use.
Prepaid meters have also evolved over the years with DisCos including features that mitigate against energy theft and offering more consumption data.
