Energy Expert Blasts Power Distribution Companies Over Mini Grids 

CYRIACUS IZUEKWE

An energy expert and environmental scientist, Prince Timothy Okedele has blasted the power Distribution Companies, (DISCOs) for attempting to sabotage the efforts of the Federal Government in ensuing stable power supply, by working against the installation of mini power grids in the communities.

Okedele stated this in his remarks on the deplorable state of power supply in Nigeria. The retired senior Customs officer turned scientist warned and reminded the DISCOs that they were created through the existing laws that can also be used to disband them if they continued to oppose and failed to cooperate with the ongoing restructuring aimed at sustainable and stable electricity supply which could cause mass retrenchment of their staff.

He noted that Nigerians including small scale, medium and big companies had suffered intermittent power supply casting doubts on the ability of the private investors to supply stable power and thereby destroying the economy further.

Okedele commended the Ministry of Power for their strategic efforts in achieving a sustainable shift from the
inefficient centralised energy delivery system of the DISCOs to a diversified decentralised energy delivery system
through “Mini-Grid developers.

The Managing Director, Prince Adesoke International Ventures also commended the government for its decision to develop mini grids and noted that it was needed to break the monopoly of DISCOs who had kept millions of Nigerians in darkness and crippled commercial activity due to their poor and obsolete distribution network facilities across the country.

He observed that the DISCOs had not added any tangible value to the utility facilities since they took over rather they continued to extort people they kept in darkness through their estimated bill system and other crude methods.

Osun State- born Okedele said the problem of the DISCOs was
that they do not have the capacity for power distribution and were not prepared when they took over the sector and did not also know how to upgrade the facilities they inherited from PHCN for distribution that had
become obsolete.

He said there was no comprehensive power audit to know actually the amount of power needed in an area, stressing that it was why we still had epileptic power supply in some areas despite the efforts made to generate and transmit power.

He however commended the Minister of Power, Mr Babatunde Fashola (SAN) for his efforts in the power sector and described his appointment as timely and strategic.

“He is exploring the necessary legal frame work and disciplinary approach for productivity in the power sector which we need to attract both local and foreign investors that will boost the GDP and improve living standard in Nigeria” he stated.

He urged the Ministry and Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to allow the individual eligible consumers to purchase their energy directly from GENCOs if they can afford it and ignore the DISCOs agitation as he noted that the decision will improve power supply.

On the issue of metering, Okedele noted that now that NERC and the Ministry of Power have succeeded in their policy to create competition in meter distribution involving private people, the consumers have already started receiving supply of meters through alternative sources which was needed for stable power supply.