Unmetered Electricity Customers Rise to 7.3 Million, Reports NERC

NERC has revealed that the number of unmetered electricity customers in Nigeria has surged to 7.3 million, raising concerns about billing transparency and power sector reforms. Learn more about the issue.

The metering of electricity customers throughout the nation continues to pose significant challenges, with the number of unmetered customers increasing to 7.3 million. Recent data published by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) indicates that, from a total of over 13.16 million registered customers, electricity distribution companies, commonly referred to as DisCos, have managed to install meters for only 672,539 customers. This highlights the sluggish progress in metering initiatives by the DisCos, resulting in a substantial number of customers depending on the contentious estimated billing system.

The NERC’s 2023 Annual Report was unveiled in Abuja on Monday. As of December 31, 2023, merely 5,842,726 (44.39%) of the registered 13,162,572 customers within the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry had been metered. In 2023, DisCos installed a total of 672,539 end-use customer meters, with 25,847 meters installed under the National Mass Metering Program (NMMP), 585,265 meters under the Meter Asset Provider (MAP) framework, and 6,912 meters through the Vendor Finance Metering framework. Additionally, 53 end-use customer meters were installed via the DisCo Financed framework.

Industry experts have expressed concerns that the slow metering rate may exacerbate billing disputes and lead to increased customer dissatisfaction. In a related development, the electricity subsidy decreased to ₦151.30 billion during the year, reflecting a 17.7 percent reduction compared to 2022. The report stated that a Minimum Remittance Obligation (MRO) adjusted invoice amounting to ₦858.03 billion was issued by the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading plc (NBET) and the Market Operator (MO) for energy costs and administrative services provided to DisCos in 2023.

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The metering of electricity customers throughout the nation continues to pose significant challenges, with the number of unmetered customers increasing to 7.3 million. Recent data published by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) indicates that, from a total of over 13.16 million registered customers, electricity distribution companies, commonly referred to as DisCos, have managed to install meters for only 672,539 customers. This highlights the sluggish progress in metering initiatives by the DisCos, resulting in a substantial number of customers depending on the contentious estimated billing system.

The NERC’s 2023 Annual Report was unveiled in Abuja on Monday. As of December 31, 2023, merely 5,842,726 (44.39%) of the registered 13,162,572 customers within the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry had been metered. In 2023, DisCos installed a total of 672,539 end-use customer meters, with 25,847 meters installed under the National Mass Metering Program (NMMP), 585,265 meters under the Meter Asset Provider (MAP) framework, and 6,912 meters through the Vendor Finance Metering framework. Additionally, 53 end-use customer meters were installed via the DisCo Financed framework.

Industry experts have expressed concerns that the slow metering rate may exacerbate billing disputes and lead to increased customer dissatisfaction. In a related development, the electricity subsidy decreased to ₦151.30 billion during the year, reflecting a 17.7 percent reduction compared to 2022. The report stated that a Minimum Remittance Obligation (MRO) adjusted invoice amounting to ₦858.03 billion was issued by the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading plc (NBET) and the Market Operator (MO) for energy costs and administrative services provided to DisCos in 2023.