- Nigerian electricity distribution companies generated N801.16 billion from consumers between January and April 2026, despite enduring months of grid instability and widespread power outages.
- The staggering collection came amid severe gas supply shortages that crippled thermal power plants, forcing generation to drop significantly from 4,000MW to under 2,000MW in the first quarter of the year.
- While regional performance varied significantly, with Eko DisCo leading collection efficiency at 102.09 per cent in April, Kaduna and Kano DisCos lagged drastically behind at 43.15 per cent and 51.87 per cent.
Electricity distribution companies in Nigeria collected a total of N801.16 billion from consumers between January and April 2026, despite persistent power outages and supply constraints across the country.
Eko Hot Blog reports that data obtained from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission revealed that the 11 DisCos pulled in N204.74 billion in January, N196.68 billion in February, N196.13 billion in March, and N203.61 billion in April.
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The significant revenues were secured even as households and businesses endured months of unstable power, driven primarily by severe gas shortages that crippled power generation and forced widespread load shedding, especially during February and March.
According to the NERC commercial performance factsheets, the utilities actually billed customers a total of N1.01 trillion during the four-month window but recovered N801.16 billion, leaving about N207.77 billion in uncollected revenue.
A breakdown of the performance showed that in January, the companies issued bills worth N268.20 billion and collected N204.74 billion, leaving N63.46 billion outstanding.
This translated to a billing efficiency of 79.72 per cent and a collection efficiency of 76.34 per cent. By February, total billings fell to N242.29 billion, but collections remained strong at N196.68 billion, resulting in N45.61 billion in uncollected revenue.
In March, total billings sat at N246.43 billion with collections at N196.13 billion, leaving N50.30 billion outstanding.
The metric ticked upward in April, with billings rising to N252.43 billion and revenue collection hitting N203.61 billion, which left an uncollected balance of N48.82 billion for the month.
The regulator’s report also underscored that substantial volumes of electricity supplied to the utilities were never billed, highlighting ongoing metering gaps and commercial losses across the sector.
Performance across individual utilities varied widely. Eko Electricity Distribution Company stood out as one of the strongest performers in revenue recovery, posting a recovery efficiency of 102.09 per cent in April.
Port Harcourt, Abuja, Ikeja, and Benin DisCos also posted solid results, maintaining recovery efficiencies above 85 per cent. Conversely, northern franchises continued to struggle; Kaduna DisCo recorded a recovery efficiency of just 43.15 per cent in April, while Kano and Jos DisCos trailed at 51.87 per cent and 52.48 per cent, respectively.
The robust revenue performance occurred against a backdrop of prolonged generation shortfalls during the first quarter of the year.
Inadequate gas supply forced several thermal power plants to shut down or sharply reduce output.
Operational data from the Nigerian Independent System Operator indicated that thermal plants required an estimated 1,629.75 million standard cubic feet of gas per day to operate optimally, but actual supply dropped to about 692 million standard cubic feet per day in late February, representing less than 43 per cent of the national requirement.
At its lowest point, national grid generation plunged from around 4,000 megawatts to below 2,000 megawatts, forcing the Transmission Company of Nigeria to ration electricity nationwide.
Although the supply situation began to recover gradually toward the end of April, Nigerian consumers have continued to vocalise intense frustrations regarding high electricity tariffs, arbitrary estimated billing practices, and overall poor service delivery.
Meanwhile, in a bid to safeguard consumer rights, the Lagos State Electricity Regulatory Commission recently clarified that electricity supply licensees are prohibited from recovering outstanding charges that are more than 12 months old.
According to the state regulator, consumers cannot be mandated to pay back-billed charges beyond a one-year window, except in confirmed cases involving meter tampering, illegal energy use, or the deliberate obstruction of meter readings.
