Businesses in Africa’s largest economy, Nigeria, lose US$29 billion annually as a result of unreliable power supply in the West African nation.
This is according to a World Bank report which was released on Wednesday April 21, 2021.
The report observed that Nigeria had the largest number of people without access to electricity in the world.
Making a presentation at a virtual dialogue on Power Sector Recovery Programme, the Bank’s Practice Manager, in charge of West, and Central Africa Energy, Ashish Khanna noted that Nigerian utilities get paid for only half of the electricity they receive.
“For every N10 worth of electricity received by distribution companies (Discos), about N2.60 is lost in poor distribution infrastructure and through power theft. Another N3.40 is not being paid for by customers, the report explained.
“Six in 10 of registered customers are not metered, and their electricity bills are not transparent and clear. This contributes to resistance to pay electricity bills.”
The PSRP document presented by the Bank stated that only 51 percent of installed capacity was available for generation, as an average Nigerian consumed four times less energy than her counterpart in a typical lower middle-income country.
It, however, noted that every Nigerian paid less for electricity than what it cost to supply electricity to them.
It stated that the government for years was paying the difference because the government wanted to help the poor Nigerian families to pay their bills.
“But richer families use more electricity; so a big chunk of the government’s support ends up going to those who do not really need help with paying bills,” it stated.
On the PSRP, the Bank described it as a comprehensive response to Nigeria’s power challenges with the aim to renew the country’s economy by rebuilding a functioning and fair power sector.
It also stated that between June 2020 and February 2021, the World Bank Board approved $1.25 billion financing to support the government in its efforts to reset the power sector.
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
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