Managing Director/ CEO, Century Power Generation, Dr. Chukwueloka Umeh , at weekend said the Federal Government’s Power Sector Recovery Programme (PCRP) has not made appreciable impact in the nation’s power sector.
Umeh, who spoke at a zoom conference on “The Dilemma of Electricity Tariff Regulation in Nigeria”, attributed to the failure of the programme to lack of dynamic environment to smooth sail the policy.
The Power Sector Recovery Programme is a series of policy actions, operational governance and financial interventions that would be implemented by the Federal Government between 2017 and 2021 to reset the Nigerian electricity supply industry for future growth.
The objective of the programme is to review Nigeria’s economy by rebuilding a functioning, fair, power system through restoring the sector’s financial viability, improving power supply, strengthening the sector’s institutional framework and increase transparency.
Umeh told reporters that the Federal Government should consider different tactics and strategies to fix the ills in the nation’s electricity value chains instead of gluing to the power recovery programme.
Specifically, he advocated the need for the Federal Government to deregulate the power sector, adding that the development would allow the sector to be run in a productive manner.
He also said freeing the sector from the clutches of regulation would give room for more investors to stake their funds therein which would add value to the country’s economy.
“We should start thinking differently. It is time to take a very different approach. We need to completely deregulate the sector. Allow the sector to grow, give room for investors to come in and then regulate it,” he added.
Lamenting the lack of cost reflective tariff as the bane of power distribution investors in the country, Umeh emphasised the need for more investment in the country and free hand for investors to fix electricity tariff.
He said it was not true that fixing tariff by the power investors would encourage exploitations of consumers, stressing that the development would rather pave way for consumers to choose the best affordable prices which would eventually crash what they pay for the service.
Umeh, who faulted the recent postponement in the adjustment of electricity tariff in the country, said Nigeria missed the opportunity to have cost-reflective tariff in the power sector
He, however, commended the Federal Government for introducing the Meters Asset Providers to boost deployment of meters as well as the ongoing moves to unbundle the Transmission Company of Nigeria, adding that power consumers and the economy would benefit immensely from the gestures.
