The debt is crippling the electricity company.
The Chief Executive Officer, Eko Electricity Distribution Company, Oladele Amoda, on Friday said that customers under its network were owing over N9 billion.
Mr. Amoda told the News Agency of Nigeria in Lagos that a large chunk of the amount was owed by government agencies.
He said that the huge debt could be traced to overbilling, estimated bills and complaints from customers which had lingered for long.
The PHCN boss said that the debt had adversely affected the operations of the company.
“No business company can deliver with such a high debt profile because the company needs to improve its services to the customers.
“This amount is for already consumed energy and we need the payment so that we can improve our services.
“That is why we have been sensitising the public on the importance of bill settlement,’’ he said.
The CEO urged the customers to pay their bills promptly, adding that vandalism had nearly crippled the company’s operations. He also appealed to indebted customers to clear their bills, saying that a large number of the customers were indebted.
He said that with the ongoing Credit Advance Payment Metering Implementation (CAPMI), issues associated with overbilling and estimated bills would be addressed.
“About 50 per cent of our customers are yet to be metered, but we hope that soonest, issues of not having pre-paid meters will come to pass.
The PHCN boss said that the public needed to be enlightened to change their attitude toward public property. He said the company had concluded arrangements with a meter-producing firm to make available meters that would be allotted to willing customers within the zone.
Mr. Amoda, however, urged customers to be vigilant with PHCN installations in their neighbourhoods, adding that any vandalised sub-station would not have immediate replacements.
(NAN)
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