Nigeria has warned other African neighboring countries that are owing in electricity bills to pay up over $9million in electricity supply fees or have their power disconnected.
The Niger Republic, Togo, and Benin are among the countries currently owing Nigeria electricity bills, up to the tune of $9million dollars. The managing director of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) Mr Usman Mohammed has issued a warning to the countries to pay up their debt to Nigeria.
Mr Mohammed also disclosed that the countries have owed Nigeria as much as $100 million since he took office, but that debt is now standing at $9 million.
“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.
Mr Usman, who also chairs the West African Power Pool (WAAP) said:
“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.”
