The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission has reported that the number of unmetered electricity customers in the country has risen to 7.3 million.
This increase highlights the slow pace of metering efforts by electricity distribution companies , leaving many customers reliant on the controversial estimated billing system.
According to the latest figures from NERC, only 672,539 out of over 13.16 million registered customers have been metered.
This means that a significant majority of customers are still subject to estimated billing, which has drawn criticism from consumers and experts alike. The NERC’s 2023 Annual Report was released in Abuja on Monday.
As of December 31, 2023, only 5,842,726 (44.39%) of registered customers were metered. The report revealed that DisCos installed a total of 672,539 customer meters in 2023. This includes 25,847 meters under the National Mass Metering Program (NMMP) and 585,265 under the Meter Asset Provider (MAP) framework.
NERC officials expressed concern about the slow metering pace. They warned that it could lead to more billing disputes and customer dissatisfaction.
In addition to metering challenges, the report noted a drop in electricity subsidies to ₦151.30 billion, a decline of 17.7% from 2022. “A Minimum Remittance Obligation (MRO) adjusted invoice of ₦858.03 billion was issued by Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading plc (NBET) and Market Operator (MO) for energy costs and administrative services to DisCos in 2023,” the report stated.
Despite these issues, the federal government plans to pay around ₦180.8 billion in electricity subsidies to power consumers whose tariffs have been frozen since December 2022. NERC has approved various amounts for different DisCos, including ₦26.4 billion for Abuja and ₦23.76 billion for Ikeja.
Moreover, NERC has imposed fines totaling ₦8.3 billion on the 11 DisCos for overcharging customers. They have also directed these companies to compensate consumers for improper billing practices. These developments were outlined in the September 2024 Supplementary Order of the Multi-Year Tariff Order, issued in Abuja by NERC.
