The want for electricity is one of the most pressing needs as almost all of our domestic and all industrial duties are carried out with electricity. The major quota of electricity generated in this country, Nigeria is generated from gases and the rest is generated through hydropower in the Kainji Dam.
The major electricity distributing body is called NEPA as a whole. NEPA no longer exists officially but Nigerians will not stop calling any distributing body within NEPA, long after it NEPA metamorphosed into Power Holding Company of Nigeria, PHCN, and then broke into three arms, the generating arm: the regulating arm, and the distributing arm.
Major electricity distribution companies largely purchase electricity for distribution from the generation bodies. Due to the gap being bridged by the Discos, officially known as Electricity Distribution Companies, they often stand in as the ones responsible for billing the users of their service and for the collection of revenue.
There are 11 Electricity Distribution Companies (Discos) working in Nigeria. They include Ikeja Distributing Company and Eko Distribution Company covering the two halves of Lagos State; Ibadan Distributing Company (IBDC) covering all other southwestern states of Ogun, Oyo, Osun, and the North Central state of Kwara; Benin Distribution Company covering Edo, Delta, Ondo, and Ekiti State; Jos Distribution Company covering Plateau, Bauchi, and Gombe States.
Others include Abuja Distribution Company covering the FCT Niger, Nassarawa, and the Kogo States, and Yola Distribution Company covering Borno, Yobe, Adamawa, and Taraba States; Kaduna Distribution Company covering all North West States except Kano and Katsina which together with Jigawa are under Kano Distribution Company.
We will be talking about two Discos in the Eastern part of the country. Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company and Enugu Electricity Distribution Company.
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Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company is a privately owned electricity distribution company that operates currently in four states of the federation; Cross River State, Akwa Ibom State, Rivers State, and Bayelsa state. PHED became a privatized company on the 1st day of November 2013 when the once owned power company was taken over by the corporation known as 4 Power Consortium LTD.
Enugu Electricity Distribution Company, EEDC, came about when the electricity reform act of 2005 divided into 11 electricity distribution companies, it was this that gave birth to EEDC. It was bought by private Investors, The Interstate Electrics Limited, a subsidiary of the Chrome Group owned by Emeka Offor, a business conglomerate.
Enugu Electricity Distribution Company, EEDC, is distributing power to the five Southeastern states of Enugu, Imo, Anambra, Abia, and Ebonyi states. To compare the two Discos, we would look at the tariffs, efficiency, and power constancy.
EEDC Tariff Versus PHED Tariff There have been debates about which one of the two Electricity Distribution companies in the East charges the most in their tariffs and we will be evaluating that under this subtopic.
Under EEDC, customers on band A with a power supply of at least 20 hours a day are expected to pay 53.93 Naira per kilowatt used while PHED charges 53.02 Naira per kilowatt.
For customers on band B with a minimum of 16 hours, EEDC charges 54.60 Naira per kilowatt while PHED charges 52.59 per kilowatt. For customers on B and C, that are running on electricity for a minimum of 12 hours per day, EEDC charges 48.89 Naira per kilowatt while PHED charges 46.15 Naira per kilowatt.
From the given figures above, it will be noted that though the tariff rates are a bit close, that of Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) is slightly higher than that of Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHED) by a little margin.
The efficiency of the two Electricity Distribution Companies in the East in distributing electricity to customers on a regular basis has also been a subject of argument.
It is important to note that the ability of any of the two electricity distribution companies to distribute constant electricity depends on the amount of electricity that they were given to distribute by the Central bodies that generate electricity.
The issue of energy theft is still one of the issues that are hindering the two distribution companies from fully powering the Eastern part of the country.
According to sources, only 9% of electricity generated in Nigeria is given to the South East while each of the other regions gets higher. Be mindful of the fact that there are three states under PHEDC and five under EEDC. So EEDC comes to the table with a shortcoming.
EEDC power supply is usually targeted to cities and industrial areas. Enugu vs Port Harcourt and Awka vs Uyo and Owerri vs Yenagoa may have the same level of power supply. But when you go to the rural areas of Enugu and compare them with the rural areas in Rivers, you would find that PHEDC trumps EEDC.
By Prince Chime
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