What is Meter Asset Provider (MAP)
A person that is granted a permit by the Commission to provide metering services which may include meter financing, procurement, supply, installation, maintenance and replacement.
Objectives of MAP
The main objective of these Regulations is to provide standard rules to achieve the following:
- Encourage the development of independent and competitive meter service in Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).
- Eliminate estimated billing practices in NESI.
- Attract private investment to the provision of metering services in NESI.
- Close to the metering gap through accelerated meter rollout in NESI.
- Enhance revenue assurance in NESI.
Rights of MAPs
- Legal ownership of the meter asset until fully amortized through the payment of a metering service charge by beneficiary customers.
- Right to be paid in full the aggregated metering service charge paid by the customer during the billing cycle.
- Access to customer premises to enable it to carry out its operations with respect to the meter asset in compliance with the Metering Code, Meter Reading, Billing and Collection Regulation and any other applicable Regulation of the Commission.
- MAPs shall be granted access to viewing rights to the vending platform associated with meters’ asset supplied under the MSA.
Obligations of the MAP to Customer
- Periodic inspection of meters to ensure integrity and reading accuracy. Where required, the Map shall arrange for the testing and calibration of customer meters in line with the provisions of the metering code.
- The MAP shall repair or replace faulty meters within two (2) working days of being notified of such faults.
- Where a MAP fails to repair or replace a meter within two (2) working days of a report by the customer or Distribution Licensee, the customer shall not be liable for the payment of metering service charge for the billing period unless such delays were as a result of inaccessibility to the customer’s premises.
- In the event of a prolonged delay in repairing or replacing a defective meter asset, the Distribution Licensee and MAP shall agree on an appropriate compensation to the Distribution Licensee for loss of revenue.
- The MAP shall perform its obligation to customers according to service standards set out in a Service Level Agreement (SLA) with the Distribution Licensee
Rights of the Customer
- All customers are eligible for the installation of an appropriate meter to accurately determine energy consumption and provide for energy accounting.
- In line with the provisions of the Metering Code, a customer’s meter shall be repaired or replaced by the MAP within two (2) working days. A customer meter shall be repaired or replaced at no additional cost within the amortization period of an asset unless damage was as a result of the willful action of the customer. Where there is a dispute on the responsibility for the damage of a meter asset, the customer has a right to fair resolution in line with the Metering. Code and other applicable Regulations and the MAP shall provide a meter pending the resolution of the dispute.
- Where it is established that the customer willfully damaged a meter, the MAP shall replace the meter based on upfront payment by the customer or other mutually agreed terms of payment.
- Where the MAP is unable to provide a replacement meter within a billing period, an average of the last three (3) months billing/vending shall be applied for the purpose of determining customer’s energy consumption.
- Where a customer relocates within the franchise area, the customer shall apply to the Distribution Licensee for the transfer of services including applicable credits for Energy.