By Constance Athekame
An expert on power, Mr Ayotomiwa Adekahunsi says a survey conducted by his firm revealed that consumers are willing to pay for electricity consumed if they are metered transparently.
Adekahunsi, who is the Chief Executive Officer, Q-Tech Nigeria Limited, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Abuja.
According to him, poor metering has remained a challenge in the country’s power sector.
“The survey revealed that a lot of consumers are willing to pay their bills if the metering system is made more transparent and accurate.
“This means that the payment can only be done if the consumers are appropriately metered.
“We use metering to secure revenue. As you well know, within the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) liquidity is a big problem.
“This means the power that is being generated, transmitted and distributed is not being paid for accurately.
“This is not good for the business and in no time, the problem might affect some operators to fold up,” he said.
Adekahunsi said that with accurate metering, the Electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) and the government would be able to secure revenue and improve the power supply in the country.
He said that Q-Tech had deployed smart meters to some DisCos, adding that the company’s target is government and large corporate entities,
“When you look at aggregate, technical and commercial losses, you would see that some of the sub-segments of customers who contribute to the revenue loss are with government or large corporate organisations.
“If we are able to adequately meter the consumers using powerful software and analytics application then you will be able to track and secure revenue for the DisCos and government.
“This also applies to the government organisations and corporate entities, with our smart meters, that will allow visibility into their consumption, usage payment and billing,” he said.
According to him, with the initiative, there is now a transparent platform.
“It is no longer a black box, where people just send you a bill and you do not even know how it came about.
“With this platform which is the “power track’’, you are able to see what you are using daily and monthly.
“As Nigeria’s energy landscape has evolved, demand has shifted toward smarter technologies capable of improving efficiency, transparency and accountability,” he said.
Adekahunsi said that Q-Tech was making sure that the issue of liquidity is addressed in the power sector by expanding its expertise in intelligent metering and automation.
He said that the company would continue to strengthen its capabilities in conventional electrical engineering and power infrastructure.
“Looking ahead, Q-Tech’s commitment remains unchanged: to provide reliable power solutions and strengthen lasting partnerships.
“With this innovation, we continue to earn the trust of clients and communities through consistent performance, technical excellence and service delivery.” (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Francis Onyeukwu