The latest update on metering by the Federal Government reveals that 609,585 electricity consumers were metered in 2023, with 7,319,846 registered power users still unmetered nationwide.
According to data from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), out of the 13,162,572 registered consumers receiving supply from the national grid, 5,842,726 have been metered. This translates to an overall metering rate of 44.39%, while 55.61% of consumers receive bills through estimation from the 11 power distribution companies (Discos) across the country.
In the first quarter of 2023, 171,107 power users were metered, followed by 178,864, 148,389, and 111,225 in the second, third, and fourth quarters respectively. The slow rollout of meters by Discos has been a longstanding issue since the privatisation of the power sector in 2013.
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To address this challenge, the Federal Government secured a $500 million World Bank loan for the Nigerian Distribution Sector Recovery Programme. This funding aims to improve the financial and technical performance of Discos, including bulk procurement of customer/retail meters and meter data management systems.
The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, stated that the presidential metering initiative plans to provide two million meters annually for the next five years to improve liquidity in the sector and reduce estimated billing.
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Despite these efforts, many power users continue to demand meters and complain about exploitation by Discos, highlighting ongoing challenges in the sector.