The Electricity Meter Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (EMMA) has urged the
Federal Government to create and make available 5% special intervention fund for local electricity power manufactures to enable them to continue to produce and compete with their counterparts from China.
The executive secretary of EMMA Mr. Muyideen Ibrahim who spoke to journalists at the official commissioning of the remodeled National Meter Test Station at Oshodi last week in Lagos said that “EMMA will continue to contribute their quota to improving the regulation of power to the entire nation in general and will continue to create more jobs for Nigerians”
He said that EMMA’s mandate is to provide integrated services to the enhancement of power industry; and urge the Federal Government to create 5% special intervention fund for local electricity power manufactures so as to boost their manufacturing power.
He further stated that “the basis of the 5% special intervention fund is just to enable the government to create sort of a special fund for their members; sort of a soft landing so that they can be using that one to produce meters, because as it is now they are having a lot of competitors especially from the Chinese. They bring in their meters that are well supported over there and their government is giving them incentives. So it is on that basis that we made that demand to give our members same playing ground so they can also produce and sale to DISCOs at a very competitive price”
He added that the interest rate of any loan given to the local manufacturers should not be more than 5%. “You know if you go to bank to borrow the interest rate is about 24 to 25% depending on your negotiation power. But if they create a special fund of 5 per cent flat that will give us a good level playing ground to manufacture, then it will enable us to employ more Nigerians, enable us to create more market, and that will come out at a very competitive price”.
He however pointed that government should liberalise the metering gap to enable their products get to the final consumers. “Yes you know it is the DISCOs that manufacturers sell to and when you see some of the meters the name of the DISCOs will be written specifically on it. What we are clamouring for now is that the government should liberalise the market so that whoever needs meter can go to an approved NERC vendor to his own. It will liberalise the market and more Nigerians will be metered will be adequately metered”.
