The Association of Nigerian Electricity Distributors, ANED, comprising of the 11 Distribution Companies, DISCOs, has threatened to commence the disconnection of power supply to military and police barracks as well as ministries, departments and agencies across the country, over accumulated N26 billion.
The group however, appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari for a bail-out to cushion the effects of the debt on their operations, saying it could no longer bear the huge debt.
The ANED Director, Research and Advocacy, Sunday Oduntan, said that more than N10 billion out of the total debt of N26 billion is owed by Military formations in Kaduna, Lagos, Oyo, Kwara and Ogun states.
Oduntan hinted that the Nigerian military, para-military and MDAs all over the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja are currently indebted to the 11 DISCOs nationwide.
He said the huge debt owed the DISCOs was now hampering their operations.
Giving a breakdown of the debt, Oduntan claimed that the Military and MDAs at both the Federal and state levels are owing N6.7 billion to the Kaduna DISCO; N7 billion to the Abuja DISCO; N5.2 billion to Ibadan DISCO; N2.3 billion to the Eko DISCO; N3.8 billion to the Benin DISCO and; N860m to the Kano DISCO, just as the debts owed other DISCOs run to several billions of Naira.
“We need to understand that there are three layers in the value chain of electricity. We have the GENCOs, which generate electricity and sell to the Federal Government through the Transmission Company of Nigeria who will then sell to us, DISCOs, 11 distribution companies across the country.”
“Which means all the money we are collecting from distributing electricity to the public, we only retain less than 25 percent of all money as our own. The remaining goes to the other stakeholders.
“When you buy electricity, you supply out and the Military, the MDAs and people are either not paying their debts or stealing energy, you now have commercial and collection losses.”
Follow Us
