Abuja Residents Decry Estimated Billing, Expert Calls For Regulation

Abuja Residents who are under the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) have expressed their frustrations over the rising cases of estimated billing, describing it as a financial strain on their households.

Estimated billing is a practice used by Electricity Distribution Companies, otherwise known as DisCos, to charge their consumers based on projected usage rather than actual consumption.

This method, THE WHISTLER gathered, has been greeted with criticism, particularly from the Abuja residents who argued that it often leads to inflated bills that do not accurately reflect their electricity usage.

Also, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), in its latest report, said the number of Nigerians on estimated billing rose to 7.07 in the first quarter of 2024.

Speaking with THE WHISTLER in Abuja, a resident of Jahi District, Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Mr Stephen Monday, who said he is on estimated billing, described it as outrageous and exploitative.

Monday said since last year, his estimated billing has been skyrocketing, adding that the development is affecting his budget.

According to him, his monthly bill has risen to N48,000, saying that the rise in his monthly utility bill is outrageous and exploitative, and called on the management of the AEDC to come to his rescue.

He said: “In the last year, my electricity bill has been skyrocketing, and this is worrisome considering my financial ability. I have been on estimated billing since 2018 and I started paying N4000 monthly, but about two months or thereabout, it was increased to N5,000.

“Almost one year after, it started jumping astronomically, and to date, they (AEDC) have not stopped increasing it every month. As of today, my monthly electricity bill is N48,000. How realistic is this? This is outrageous, and for me, it is exploitative”.

Also speaking, another Abuja resident, Mr Tajudeen Musa, who said his monthly electricity bill has risen to N52,000, described the development as challenging and said it is telling on his monthly budget.

Musa, however, called on the AEDC management to hasten the distribution of prepaid meters to consumers, saying that is the only solution to curb the menace of estimated billing.

Speaking with THE WHISTLER, an Energy Sector Analyst, Barrister Bode Fadipe, who said metering inadequacy was responsible for estimated billing, called for its regulation.

Fadipe, who is the Chief Executive Officer of Sage Consulting Communications, said: ” Unless there has been a new regulation eliminating estimated billing, the concept of estimated billing is almost as old as the sector.

“The basis for estimated billing has not changed – it is because there is meter inadequacy. Once a customer uses electricity, that customer is expected to pay because the sector does not exist for charity.

“However, there could be the challenge of excessively high estimated billing. NERC has tried to solve this by giving regulation on capping of estimated billing”.