By Daniel Maduka
All appears set for the official commissioning of the 186 Megawatts Geometric Power Plant, the parent company of the Aba Power Limited Electrical APLE.
The $800 Million worth Power Generating and Distribution Outfit, originally billed for commissioning on February 24 2024, will now be flagged off on Monday February 26 according to a statement by the Management on Wednesday February 21.
The Commissioning Ceremony, expected to be graced by President Bola Tinubu, and Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, and other high profile Government officials Captains of industry, and top business players from across the country, is coming on the heels of the plea by Aba residents for an improved service delivery and a realistic and humane billing system .
The Source reports that since taking charge of the power needs of Aba Ring Fence comprising the nine Local Councils of Abia South Senatorial zone in the last two years, Consumers have had more sordid tales to narrate than pleasant ones.
The Professor Bath Nnaji backed power Generating Company, which is also one of the country’s 12 licensed Electricity Distribution outfits, has largely been embroiled in a crisis of confidence with the larger part of its consumer base, the fulcrum of which centers on accusations of poor service delivery, arbitrary estimated billing and outright extortionist and exploitative tendencies.
Some Aba residents who volunteered comments, while expressing happiness over the imminent commissioning of the Gas-powered turbines that is expected to provide 24 hours power to nine out of the 17 Local Councils of Abia state, urged the company not to take undue advantage of its monopolistic position to exploit the consumers.
We have been monitoring the service delivery level and billing methods of APLE ( Geometric) since it took over the Aba Ring Fence two years ago. And we believe that the company is reaping off the residents and other consumers with unprecedented exploitative billing system for services barely rendered.
“We have seen a lot in the past two years and we wish to let Geometric know that all of us in Aba are not ignorant of the situation in the last two years. We were only sympathetic, but unfortunately, they ( Geometric) took it for granted . It will never repeat itself any more ,as any extortionist and exploitative tendencies by the power company will receive adequate public attention” a concerned resident stated.
But a top Management staff of the Power company, who craved anonymity revealed on Monday February 19, that the problem of epileptic power supply and general poor service delivery is not peculiar to Geometric, but a national phenomenon, resulting from the harsh operating environment which most of the Discos have found themselves.
He, however, expressed optimism that Aba Residents and, in deed consumers generally will witness a new dawn as efforts have been concluded for the commissioning of the Outfit.
” In the first place ours is a unique Disco, in that we are the only one out of the lot that is generating its own power.
“All this while, we have been trying to put things in shape, while at the same time trying to meet the power needs of our consumer base from the national grid ,which every body is aware of the problems there in.
“But now we are about to generate our own power in line with the terms of our operational mandate.
“We are licensed. to produce 186 Megawatts of power, while the power need of our area of coverage is 144 megawatts for now.
“We have three Gas powered Turbines ,each with 47 Megawatts. We are going to power one before the commissioning ceremony. And thereafter we will power the other two.
“Our assurance is that from now on it is a win, win situation for Aba residents and our consumers in all the areas of our operation.
“But the consumers have to take up their own responsibilities by way of meeting their own obligations in terms of prompt and regular payments and protection of the facilities in place” the top management staff stated.
