By Desmond Ejibas
The Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHED) said on Friday it lost N2.2 billion in revenue to unpaid bills and electricity wastage by consumers.
The Managing Director of 4Power, owners of PHED, Mr Matthew Edevbie, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Port Harcourt that 90 per cent of meters in homes were by-passed which was partly responsible for the revenue loss.
“In Port Harcourt for example, every 100 units of electricity that comes to our electricity network, we collect only 25 per cent equivalent of money.
“Even when we install meters in homes, about 90 per cent of the meters are usually by-passed.
“For every N1 billion worth of electricity PHED brings to this region, every month we get N450 million and lose N550 million.
“PHED’s supply of electricity to four states is in excess of N4 billion every month, meaning that we lose N2.2 billion worth of investment funds on monthly basis,” he said.
Edevbie said that customers on its R2 platform paid N24.91 per unit which was a shortfall to the average tariff of N28.90 per unit allotted to Port Harcourt.
He said the development meant that DisCos subsidised electricity by N4 which also affected revenue.
He said that PHED was not in advantage position compared to Lagos DisCo which had 55 per cent domestic and 45 per cent industrial users.
“This means that Lagos DisCo average-carriage amounts to lower subsidy.
“But in our four states of coverage, we have 85 per cent domestic users while 15 per cent are commercial users, meaning that we should go higher to compensate for the low tariff.
Edevbie said that some customers should be blamed for high electricity bills charged to their homes as such customers allowed neighbours to tap electricity from their meters and wires.
He urged the residents to report cases of electricity theft and vandalism of facilities to PHED outlets.
PHED covers Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River and Rivers.
