The managing director
of Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Usman Mohammed has asked the
country’s international electricity customers to pay $9 million outstanding
power bills.
He disclosed that
international electricity customers have accumulated a bill of over $100
million since he assumed office as he warned that they will get disconnected if
they don’t pay up.
Mohammed who is also
the chairman of West African Power Pool (WAAP) said; “It is not because I am
the chairman of the West African Power Pool (WAAP) that I will be allowing
international customers to cheat Nigeria.
“When I took over as
MD TCN, both Benin and Togo were owing Nigeria more than $100 million. The debt
now remains $7 million.
“Niger is owing less
than $2 million. In short, we are not leaving them. We disconnect them as we
disconnect customers here in Nigeria. Electricity is not charity. We cannot
just allow people to consume electricity and leave us like that.
“As at now, we have
restricted their supply to only their contracted ones. We are insisting they
pay all their outstanding bills before we reconnect them and we increase the
off-take.”