Uakutura Kambaekua
OPUWO – The Northern Regional Electricity Distributor (Nored), has reached a notable achievement in its Token Identifier (TID) Rollover project, having recorded 121 697 prepaid meters that have been updated in its jurisdiction.
This is contained in Nored’s report shared with Nampa on Monday, following the company’s annual general meeting (AGM) held in Opuwo last week.
According to the report, “Nored began the TID project on 19 October 2023, intending to update 109 862 prepaid meters, and to date, 121 697 prepaid meters have been successfully rolled over within the Nored jurisdiction.”
The project, it said involved 50 recruits from various higher education institutions in Namibia who were appointed as Token Identifier (TID) Electricians, responsible for upgrading prepaid meters and inspecting them for potential bypasses and illegal connections.
The initiative is part of a comprehensive global effort aimed at addressing all prepaid meters utilising the Standard Transfer Specification (STS), the report read.
This standardised approach facilitates the secure transfer of tokens to prepaid meters, ensuring the integrity of the generated tokens and through this initiative, Nored has expressed concern regarding the alarming prevalence of bypasses and unauthorised connections identified within its operational area, it noted.
In Namibia, there are a total of 335 964 prepaid electricity meters, with 325 106 meters (97%) having been recorded by November 21.
The report further indicated that Nored during the AGM, reaffirmed the contract extension of its directors and the auditing firm, PriceWaterhouseCoopers.
Additionally, Nored highlighted that over the past five years, there has been a dedicated effort to finalise the auditing and approval of the outstanding Annual Financial Statements for the fiscal years ending in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020, respectively.
“The auditing for the 2023 financial statements will be completed by the end of January 2025, while that of 2024 is anticipated to be done by the end of March 2025,” it said.
–Nampa