The Federal Government-funded Phase 1 of the National Mass Metering Programme, NMMP, slated to commence in August appears to have been mired in uncertainty, as it had been put on hold following allegations of fraud by the Central Bank of Nigeria against some of the Meter Asset Providers, MAPs.
A source, who pleaded for identity to be shielded due to the sensitivity of the matter, told the PUNCH that there was no indication that the Phase 1 meter distribution would commence this month, as power distribution companies were yet to be furnished with meters.
The NMMP is an initiative of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, in conjunction with the Presidential Power Task Force. The initiative was launched in August 2020 to allow the CBN to fund the acquisition of meters on behalf of DisCos by paying directly to the MAPs.
The free metering programme commenced with the Phase 0 where one million meters were supposed to have been distributed. However, the CBN, on July 20, asked the Federal High Court in Lokoja, Kogi State, to freeze accounts belonging to 157 MAPs for allegedly diverting funds meant for the procurement of prepaid meters.
