* Now, PHED scales above NERC benchmark, hits N7Bn revenue in June 2023
· Targets no more than 21 per cent loss per unit
· As CEO says bypass is more prevalent amongst the wealthy
By Our Reporter
Workers made surprising remarks at the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution company (PHED), saying Dr Benson Uwheru who took over one year ago, has calmed down nerves that brought down blood pressure.
Explaining how he did it, Dr Uwheru told newsmen he brought liquidity and sustainability to PHED, increased revene by 50 per cent, increased salaries by 30 per cent, and gave promotions where due.
Details:
For the first time since inception almost 10 years ago, the Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company (PHED) has hit a monthly revenue of N7Bn from N4.8Bn monthly average in 2022.
The managing director, Benson Uwheru PhD, who disclosed this to mark his first year on seat, said PHED has also surpassed the benchmark set for it by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
Speaking with the Port Harcourt press at the headquarters on Moscow Road, the MD said the Disco is now solvent enough to meet their monthly obligations especially to value chain stakeholders.
He disclosed the pillar of the work they do mention revenue growth as the topmost. In that guise, he said PHED is determined to grow its revenue and has succeeded in this to 50 per cent in 2023.
He also said PHED cut down its aggregated technical, commercial and collection (ATC&C) loss from 50 per cent he met down to 39 per cent at the moment further to 21 per cent in the near future.
Uwheru said the team would keep raising the bar, expressing gratitude to all that made it possible for him to achieve this feat in just one year.
In the next one year, he hinted, the team would strive to increase customer service in every region (district) under the PHED (Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta, Akwa Ibom and Cross River states), and to achieve what he termed seamless delivery of excellent service. Above all, he mentioned N10Bn as the target to meet.
He also talked about achieving a turnaround of the PHED and to make it the number one in the industry in customer service. They want to build a team around reliability, integrity, and sustainability, he said. They also intend to increase liquidity.
Addressing the workers and guests earlier, Uwheru said he was excited because of what his team achieved in the past one year. “However, we must not be carried away because success expires every midnight.
“Do not forget the destination because destination is not by chance. God connects people in time and season.
I embraced the PHED challenge and we came up with a value statement which is to build a team to provide quality.”
He went on: “We now bond together to achieve target, and we can see the importance of working together.
“We insist that our greatest assets are our employees, not the transformers, cables, and pole.
“We continue to review ways of getting the best out of our workers. We have set up a committee to assess the impact of subsidy removal on salaries of PHED workers. We are working out the numbers to make sure a worker successfully goes to work and goes back home.”
He said the company was trying hard to get things done and meet targets; “We want to achieve improved processes with the use of technology. Policies have been developed to create standards.
“We believe that people are the pillars, thus high motivation with salary increases, improved HMO system, and best of care. We want to achieve self-disruption. We intend to create a great place of work.”
Enumerating what his team did to achieve the targets, the CEO: “It is about putting human face to the business. We did salary increases by 30 per cent, did better HMO, HSE, boosted bonding through sports, and doing open door policy. We created an enabling environment especially for the women. In fact, we are setting up a creche for their babies”.
Uwheru made startling disclosure, saying it is rather wealthy people that do meter bypass more. “They keep big dogs and lock their huge gates whereas the meter is locked inside.”
He gave number of measures the PHED would execute to meet its target of not more than 21 per cent ATC&C loss. He also gave updates, saying the Disco has achieved 385,000 metered households or 57 per cent whereas the gap is now 285,000. He appealed to customers to endeavour to acquire meters through a scheme called MAP whereby they paid for it through a bank-backed method.
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