Upper East: NEDCo retrieves GHC8 million, disconnects over 9,000 customers in revenue mobilisation exercise

The Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo) in the Upper East Region’s operational area has retrieved a total of GHC8 million at the end of its revenue mobilisation exercise launched in October 2023.

NEDCo in the Upper East Region embarked on a rigorous debt recovery exercise in October 2023 to mobilise revenue in order to improve its service delivery.

Speaking at a press conference in Bolgatanga to brief the media on the progress of the exercise, the area manager of NEDCo, Ing. Eugene Odoi Addo, said the company has, through the exercise, been able to recover about GHC8 million owed by institutions and residential customers.

Addo added that over 9000 have also been disconnected from the electricity power supply, while a good number of the customers signed payment agreements.

He said “The whole month of October was earmarked for revenue mobilization throughout the operational areas. Our aim was to go and collect money our customers owed us, especially from the MDAs because we realized they owed a chunk of the money. At the beginning of the exercise, over GHs165m was in areas. Our customers owed us GHC165 million.”

“I must say at the end of the exercise, we were able to collect about GHC8 million from the post-pay customers alone. As we went around, those customers who were not able to pay their debts were disconnected. In all, we were able to disconnect over 9000 customers. Some made part payments and were reconnected; others also came and signed payment agreements. In the payment agreement, you show commitment to how you are going to settle the remaining balance,” he added.

Answering questions on why the company only recovered less than one-quarter of the entire amount owed, Addo explained that the entire figure in their account books sometimes includes billing errors and irredeemable debts.

“Let me clarify that, though in the books you will see GHC165 million, when you go out those debts may be some billing errors or they may be untraceable customers’ debts that you can’t even trace.

So, we come back and try to correct some of those things. If you compare the amount, we realized from the total debt owed, it’s a drop in the ocean but you agree that most of the debt is due to critical agencies example the hospitals in the region. They owe a very large amount and you can’t just go and disconnect.

The other issue is that some of the debts are classified as legacy debt. You can’t hold some of the facilities accountable for those debts. The government says it is going to pay those debts. So, we always want to use our head office in Tamale to engage the government on those debts”, he explained.

Reporting by Castro Senyalah in the Upper East Region

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