N47bn Debt: AEDC Gives Presidential Villa, 85 Others 10-day Disconnection Notice

The Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) has given 86 government establishments, including the Presidential Villa, ministries, departments and agencies of government (MDAs) a 10-day notice to pay up over N47 billion debt due as at December 2023 or risk disconnection.

Among the list of debtors is the Chief of Defence Staff Barracks and Military formations with over N12 billion debt followed by the Ministry of FCT with a N7.5 billion debt, Ministry of Finance, which owed over N5.4 billion, followed by the Niger State Liaison Office in Abuja with N3.4 billion debt.

Others include: Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Presidential Villa, Ministry of Education, Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigeria Police Force, among others.

In an advertorial seen by LEADERSHIP, the management of the power distribution company said, “The Abuja Electricity Distribution Plc (AEDC) is constrained to do this publication with the details of Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies with long outstanding unpaid bills for services rendered to them through the provision of electricity supply in that our previous attempts to make them honour their obligations have not achieved the desired result.

“The relevant MDAs are hereby given notice that AEDC shall after the expiration of 10 days from the date of this publication, that is, after Wednesday, 28th February 2024, embark on disconnection of our services to them until they discharge their obligations to us by paying their debts,” it read.

This is as electricity distribution companies (DisCos) continue to grapple with poor revenue collections nationwide.

For example, according to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission’s report, the total revenue collected by all DisCos in the third quarter of 2023 was N267.61 billion out of N349.55 billion billed to customers.