The Electricity Meters Manufacturing Association of Nigeria (EMMAN) has said the reason the electricity distribution companies (DISCos) do not patronise them is that they make more money through estimated billings.
Other reasons, the body claimed, include plans by the energy firms to import meters from China and other developed countries to attract foreign investors.
*Electric-meters.
Its Executive Secretary, Mr Muhdeen Ibrahim, said the DisCos were not ready to source meters locally for their customers.
He urged the DisCos to patronise local manufacturers, adding that this would enable them to meet their customers’ demands.
According to him, when this happens, the power firms would not be able to charge their customers estimated bills, arguing that this would affect their earnings.
According to him, local meter manufacturers have the capacity to produce enough meters in the country, insisting that the DisCos know this but refused to patronise them because they want to continue making money through estimated billings.
He said: ‘’It is not that the local meter manufacturers do not have the capacity to produce enough meters in Nigeria. The capacity is there, but the problem is that DisCos want to make money through estimated billings. Also, they want to continue to patronise meter producers abraod, where they falsely hope to get better meters.
‘’Meters produced by indigenous companies are far better than the ones produced abroad. The craze for anything western is making DisCos to jettison local meter producers for their foreign counterparts.
He said the allegation by the DisCos that the meters produced in Nigeria are not compatible with their technology was untrue.
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- The Nation
