Business
PHED Introduces On-The-Spot Payment System
The Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company, PHED, has introduced On-The – Spot payment system for its customers in Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa and Cross River states.
The On-The-Spot Collection/Payment system was unveiled to the members of public recently in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital by the Chief Executive Office, PHED, Naveen Kapoor.
On-The-Spot Collection, an initiative with proven success in India that has similar energy demands like Nigeria, was conceived by the Feedback Energy Company Ltd, FEDCO, India, a Technical Partner, TP, of Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company.
PHED by its unveiling, becomes the first Disco to have introduced such a laudable initiative to the Nigerian electricity industry market.
OTSC is designed to ensure compliance with the cashless environment which PHED strives to attain, the CEO said.
The objective of this initiative according to Naveen Kapoor was to aggressively follow the path towards modernization, improving customer experience and to ensure that there was no gap in the remittance for energy consumed as a result of lack of access to payment points.
“As a technologically driven company, we are always concerned with how best to engender customers’ satisfaction at all times”, the PHED Boss maintained.
The initiative, Kapoor added would be managed by authorized staff who would be visiting customers with point of sales machines (PoS) for seamless payment at their doorsteps with proper means of identification geared towards improved customer experience especially the post-paid customers.
“This we believe would lead to database improvement through ‘Know Your Customer’ Concept, (KYC), increase in pay points with motivated workforce, and effective process monitoring which shall be handled by our well trained personnel.
“With over 513,000 customers, 324,787 are active post-paid customers usually referred to as Non Maximum Demand scattered in PHED’s coverage area. This is a huge market for us, hence, the need to encourage customers seamlessly by bringing our authorized staff with point of sales machines, POS, at their doorsteps”, Kapoor said.
He, however, advised customers not to accept receipts without PHED’s logo, not to make any transaction over unsecured network, not to share their personal identification number, PIN and card verification value CVV, number and not make use of PHED’s representatives cards for any transaction.
On-The-Spot Collection is one of numerous initiatives of PHED’s determined effort in improving service delivery to its stakeholders. The 24/7 call centre, online payment live feedback on social media, massive deployment of pre-paid meters in the last two years are some of them.
“Payment of tuition fees for undergraduate/postgraduate studies shall be subject to a maximum limit of $25,000.00 per semester,” the Manual states.
The expansion of international card limits also reflects growing confidence among lenders that foreign exchange liquidity has improved enough to support retail dollar transactions.
Speaking recently at the BusinessDay 14th Annual CEO Forum in Lagos, CBN Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the CBN said buying and selling activities now increasingly determine outcomes in the foreign exchange market, unlike in the past when market participants relied heavily on routine Central Bank interventions.
According to Cardoso, Nigeria’s net foreign exchange reserves have risen from just over $3 billion at the start of the reform programme to more than $40 billion, while gross reserves have climbed to about $52 billion, providing stronger confidence for investors and enabling the Central Bank to reserve interventions for periods of market stress rather than day-to-day liquidity management.
The restoration and expansion of international naira card spending limits are increasingly being seen as one of the clearest signs that the benefits of the CBN’s foreign exchange reforms are beginning to reach households, students and businesses making legitimate cross-border payments.
The Secretary-General and Chief Executive Officer, WEC, Dr Angela Wilkinson, disclosed this in a statement, last Thursday.
“Nigeria’s participation comes at a pivotal time as the country seeks to expand energy access, strengthen energy security, accelerate gas development and mobilise the capital required for industrialisation and sustainable economic growth.
“WEC Nigeria will convene leaders from across the energy ecosystem, apply the WEC’s globally recognised Energy Trilemma framework to Nigeria’s unique context, and promote evidence-based dialogue, practical collaboration and informed policymaking.
“It will also ensure that Nigerian and broader African perspectives contribute meaningfully to global energy conversations,” she said.
Wilkinson expressed confidence that Nigeria would play a significant leadership role at the World Energy Congress scheduled for Riyadh in April 2027 and beyond.
The statement also quoted the Chairman of WEC Nigeria, Isa, as describing the country’s participation as an opportunity to deepen national and African leadership within the global energy community through practical solutions tailored to regional development priorities.
He said the platform would promote collaboration across sectors and attract sustainable investments into Nigeria’s energy sector.
The Chief Executive Officer of WEC Nigeria, Wunti, was quoted in the statement as saying that the council would connect leadership, evidence and investment to build a secure, affordable and sustainable energy system.
“This system will be capable of driving economic growth and shared prosperity.”
According to him, the platform will also connect Nigerian institutions and businesses with international knowledge, technology, partnerships and investment opportunities through the World Energy Council’s global network.
Recall that WEC, founded in 1923, is the world’s oldest independent and impartial community of energy leaders and practitioners, advancing informed, collaborative and practical action across the global energy system.