Procurement - NEWS AGENCY OF NIGERIA

Lydia Beshel
Apr, Mon, 2025

FG to receive first batch of 3.2m meters in April

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Meters

By Constance Athekame

The Federal Government says it is set to receive the first batch of 3.205 million meters in April, procured to bridge the metering gap in the country.

The Minister of Power, Mr Adebayo Adelabu, said this in a statement by his Special Adviser, Strategic Communications and Media Relations, Mr Bolaji Tunji in Abuja on Sunday.

Adelabu said that 75,000 meters under the International Competitive Bid 1 (ICB1) were also expected by the end of April.

According to the minister the second batch of 200,000 meters will also be received in May.

He said that the Distribution Sector Recovery Programme (DISREP) was set to deliver the 3.2 million meters by 2026.

“This will be achieved through different procurement models, including 1.437 million meters through International Competitive Bid 1 (ICB1).

”There is another 217,600 meters through National Competitive Bid (NCB), and 1.550 million meters through International Competitive Bid 2 (ICB2), ” Adelabu said. .

According to him, as part of this plan, the first batch of 75,000 meters under ICB1 is expected by April, followed by the second batch of 200,000 meters in May.

”In addition to the DISREP, the N700 billion Presidential Metering Initiative (PMI) is another key intervention designed to accelerate metering,”he said.

The minister said that the PMI, which had already secured N700 billion from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), was structured to ensure large-scale meter procurement and deployment.

He said that a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) had been established to oversee the implementation of the initiative.

”While challenges persist, the facts tell a more balanced story; one of sustained effort, financial commitment, and structured implementation plans by the Federal Government to close the metering gap.

”Despite claims of stagnation, metering installations have been progressing steadily.

”As at Dec.2024, a total of 5.502 million customers had been metered, representing about 55 percent of the 10.114 million active electricity customers in the country,”he said.

He said that In 2024 alone, 572,050 meters were installed.

According to him, though installation rates have varied over the years, the sector maintains a yearly average of about 668,000 meters installed.

He said that structured financing and government-backed initiatives were expected to accelerate deployment beyond the current pace, ensuring that the metering gap is addressed efficiently.

He said that to bridge the meeting gap, the government had put in place key initiatives aimed at significantly improving metering across the country.

“The government had set a target of deploying two million meters annually for five years, with the first batch of two million meters expected to be released by the third quarter of this year.

”These structured interventions provide a clear roadmap for addressing the metering gap in an effective and sustainable manner”.

“While the metering gap remains a concern, the notion that it will take over a decade to resolve is misleading,” he said.

He said that with the ongoing DISREP and PMI initiatives, Nigeria’s metering landscape was set to experience significant improvement before the end of the year.

”The focus should be on the execution of these well-structured plans rather than a blanket critique that overlooks the real progress being made,”he said.(NAN)(www.nannews ng)

Edited by Modupe Adeloye/Kadiri Abdulrahman

Abdulaziz
Feb, Fri, 2025

Defence/Security

BPP e-procurement promotes audit, says Tunji-Ojo

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By Kelechi Ogunleye

The Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, says that the implementation of the electronic-procurement system by the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) will promote audit trail.

Tunji-Ojo lauded the initiative when the BPP Director General, Adedokun Adebowale alongside security heads of all agencies under the ministry paid a visit to his office on Thursday in Abuja.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Minister who is also the Chairman of the Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board (CDCFIB) approved the nomination of retired Maj.-Gen. Abdulmalik Jubrin as the secretary to the board.

The Minister said that e-procurement will enable Information Technology (IT) security, accountability, barrier breaking and turnaround response time.

“I want to advise that the e-procurement should be your major project because it will get rid of corruption within the system.

“What you are trying to do will also expand and increase our economy space, so for me, it’s what we need at this stage.

“You are being abroad does not mean you must relocate to Nigeria just because you want to do business in Nigeria as this is the era of performance beyond borders,” he said.

He attributed the setbacks and abandonment of some Federal Government projects to delays in procurement

He revealed that the use of technology by the ministry has fostered successes and monitoring of activities across the agencies under the ministry, especially in the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS).

“As regards passport administration, I monitor on my dashboard in the office every passport office in the whole world, so, I know how many passports is being produced daily.

“Naturally there are only three ways to make people efficient; that is, efficiency by being persuasive, secondly; efficiency by letting them know they are being trailed as the fear of the unknown makes them to perform.

‘Thirdly, let them know there are consequences for inaction just as there are rewards for action,” he said.

The Minister, while congratulating the new BPP DG on his appointment, said that the ministry was ready to partner with BPP to ensure a successful implementation of its plans, adding that the development of the country was a joint task.

In his earlier remarks, the BPP DG said that the ministry was a prove that the use of technology was the way to go in achieving organisational goals.

“I will put it on the table now that I am coming back to you to learn how you have been able to upscale what we have seen all around the agencies you oversee because we want to go e-procurement which is a paperless situation,’ Adedokun said.

He said he was dedicated to building a system where anyone home or abroad could partake in the procurement process without visiting BPP Abuja office.

Adebowale added that his office was also working on ensuring that with the budget of 2025, the procurement cycle starts and ends at most on May 31.

“Complete all your awards, then from June we want to begin to see implementation, performance and everyone on the field because we want Nigerians to feel everything we say we will do, physically.

“We have decided and are working hard to ensure the turnaround time is now maximum 20 days which means you must get a yes or no feedback on or before the 20th day.

“When we say no, we are actually saying clarify, when we decline that doesn’t mean rejection, we are only saying, please give us additional information to enable us defend you in your absence,” the DG said.

Responding to the approval by the minister, the new secretary to the CDCFIB promised to use his experience in making a difference in the board.

“I promise by the grace of God not to fail in my service as I seek the cooperation of the agencies that I am serving as secretary to extend same cooperation they have extended to my predecessor for greater service delivery,” Jubrin said.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Ismail Abdulaziz