Ikeja Electric Plc has warned customers not to pay or give money to either Ikeja Electric staff or Meter Asset Provider (MAP)  for meter and installation.

Customers are instead to send a mail to the customer care or call any of the helplines, seeking clarification on the metering of their residence.

This was contained in a press release signed by Felix Ofulue, the Head Corporate Communications at Ikeja Electric, and seen by Nairametrics.

The company stressed that “customers must always pay into the designated bank account provided by the MAP and they must always include their Application Reference Number (ARN) when making these payments”.

Due to the upward review of meter prices by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), the new price for Single Phase Meter is now N48,263.37 (Forty-Eight Thousand, Two Hundred and Sixty Three Naira and Thirty Seven Kobo), while Three Phase Meter is now N89,069.33 (Eighty-Nine Thousand, Sixty Nine Naira and Thirty Three Kobo), the statement read.

All prices are inclusive of VAT and became effective from June 1, 2020,

The disco stated in the release that the customers who have paid for meters before June 1, 2020, under the MAP scheme, but yet to be metered should forward their payment evidence stating Account Name, Application Reference Number (ARN), and IE Account Number to [email protected] for prompt confirmation.

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This will enable them to be captured as the company sets to roll out 400,000 meters in the next two years.

Ofulue stated that this is in line with the mandate of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to bridge the metering gap and reduce the incidence of estimated billing, and urged customers to take advantage of this scheme to apply through the IE portal, using their Ikeja Electric’s account number on the bill to log into the portal and update their KYC (Know Your Customer) details.

According to him, the company has in the last two years distributed and installed 120,000 meters in its coverage area and intends to meter another 400,000 customers in the next 2 years.

“Apart from eradicating estimated billing, Ikeja Electric’s metering program has also provided jobs, directly and indirectly, for thousands of Lagosians and Nigerians in general, particularly during the lockdown” he said.

In spite of logistical challenges emanating from the Covid-19 pandemic, the company has also metered Maximum Demand (MD) customers in its network and conducted periodic recertifications of the meters in line with Regulatory procedures.

“In addition, the local distribution transformers have also been metered up to 100% while the metering of newly installed transformers after completion of the project is ongoing” he explained.

He noted that Ikeja Electric has set up a debt resolution panel in the Six Business Units to address complaints on outstanding bills and other related issues to ensure reconciliation while customers are processing the application for the meter.