USAID Boosts Eko Disco’s Capacity to Reduce Technical Losses
As part of its technical assistance partnership with some electricity distribution companies in the country, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), through its technical partners, Tetra Tech, has supplied Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) with some technical equipment to help the company reduce Aggregate Technical, Commercial and Collection (ATC&C) losses and also boost its logistic and technical base. Speaking during the delivery of the equipment at Eko Disco’s corporate headquarters in Lagos, the chairman of the Board of Eko Disco, Mr. Charles Itse Momoh expressed his satisfaction on the positive outcome of the partnership between the two bodies. Momoh added that the choice of Eko Disco as one of the four distribution companies for the USAID partnership would go a long way in building a new culture of excellence that has been the focus of the core investors of the company since 2013. He also expressed the confidence that the partnership would add much more value and produce more dividends than envisaged. Also speaking at the occasion, representative of USAID/Tetra Tech, Mr. Gela Kereselidza said the equipment would serve as a big support for the attainment of performance-improvement goal of the partnership.
He said the performance of Eko Disco so far has been encouraging, adding that USAID was convinced that the choice of the company for the partnership was not a wrong decision.
Gela stressed further that the two units of state of the art Zera Test System among the equipment would help reduce Aggregate Technical, Commercial and Collection (ATC&C) losses in the company.
Apart from the Zera test system, other equipment expected to be supplied include 500 hundred DT statistic meters with all accessories (CTs, Switchers, Boxes and etc) to boost metering efficiency and billing accuracy as well as one and 1 bucket truck to boost operational efficiency in overhead line tracing and fault clearing. As part of efforts to improve the power sector in Nigeria, Power Africa, a US government-led initiative, coordinated by the USAID had also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) with four discos in Abuja, Benin, and Eko Disco in 2016, as well as Ibadan Disco. Speaking at the recent MoU signing ceremony with Ibadan Discos, Director, Office of Economic Growth and Environment, USAID, Roseann Casey noted that aggregate energy losses had been reduced at each of the DISCOs, adding also that revenue collection increased by N27 billion (approximately $75 million) in 2017.
Casey revealed that Power Africa’s support to the four distribution companies represents a $12 million investment in the self-reliance and resilience of Nigeria’s energy sector, and demonstrates USAID’s position as the world’s premier international development agency.