Mr Kola Balogun, Chairman, MOMAS Electricity Meter Manufacturing Company (MEMMCOL), has urged the Federal Government to jail any Meter Assets Providers (MAPs) who contravenes the power sector Local Content Act.
Balogun made the recommendations in an exclusive interview with TBI Africa team in Lagos, while reacting to the massive importation of electrical equipment into the country , which contravenes the Executive Order 5.
Recall that President Muhammadu Buhari on Feb. 15, 2018, signed the Executive Order 5 into law to improve local content in public procurement with science, engineering and technology components and a step toward achieving the nation’s developmental goal of improving all sectors of the economy.
“There is need for government to jail anybody who contravenes the Local Content Act, people need to be punished for contriving the act. It is when the violators of local content act are punished that they will know the importance of creating the local content in power sector.
“There is need for us to create employment, and the opportunity in the power sector that can take care of jobless people on the street, because there are so many imported items coming into the country that can be produced locally.
“Until government insists on local content enhancement in power sector, we need to take our destiny on our hands,” he said.
He said that this became necessary to check violation, as some firms might make nonsense of the Act if the government failed to impose such sanctions.
“The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), a regulator and custodian of the Local Content Act, should as a matter of urgency, commence the discharge of its obligations by monitoring the operations of companies in the power sector with a view to tracking and enforcing compliance with the Executive Order 5.
“Similarly, Federal Government should use all apparatus at its disposal in breathing life to the spirit and intent of the Act.
” Local Content Act was promulgated to enhance local participation in the power sector, but indigenous firms are yet to play significant role in the industry,” he said.
He said that the local content law for the power sector will not only protect the indigenous players in the evolving Nigerian power sector but also have positive impact on the economy by raising gross domestic product (GDP) and providing employment and business opportunities for Nigerians.
He ,however, assured that the local meters manufacturers have the production capacity to bridge the wide electricity metering gap in the sector and can also supply world-class standard meters to neighbouring countries and Africa at large.
He noted that this would also encourage foreign companies who import meters into Nigeria to come and set up manufacturing plants in Nigeria which will further boost the economy and improve capacity of Nigerians.
“We are particularly proud of NERC for having the political-will to make the commitment which will go down in the history of this country and for posterity in repositioning the power sector which is very critical to the country’s economy.
He urged the electricity distribution companies (Discos) and the MAP providers to embrace the local content law in the power sector by patronizing the local meter manufacturers while assuring that member companies are capable to deliver world class metering solutions and allied products that can compete favourably with any product in the world.
The meter manufacturer said that non-compliance with the law, should result to the suspension of projects/contracts, penalty of five per cent of project sum, withdrawal of ministry of power ’s services, and project cancellation unrecoverable sunk cost.
He said that government should also ensure that such violators are escalation to other regulators to withdraw or suspend license, withdrawal of approvals or de-classification of contractor from pre-qualification list, application of the full weight of the law in accordance with Executive order 5 and publication of non-compliant operators in newspapers and professional gazettes.
He said the government should mandate to develop local capacity in key areas such as manufacturing and fabrication and promote indigenous ownership of assets and utilization of indigenous assets in power sector operations.
“I am of the opinion that meter imported into the country is a total contravention of the Local content Act, regulation says you must patronise 30 per cent local content , which you do not fulfill and yet you are fulfilling 70 per cent foreign importation of meters.
“I am confirming to you that none of the MAPs licensee has approached me to buy meter of 30 per cent provided by the regulation despite singing an Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).
“So the 30 per cent levies by government is a welcome development to increase local capability but it is a serious issue when they import meters without fulfilling the 30 per cent initial order from the local factories,” he said.
