…Record N146bn Revenue Shortfall
…International customers owe DisCos $8.04m
By Charles Ebi
Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission ,NERC, on Tuesday announced that Electricity Distribution Companies ,DisCos, collected N509.84 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024 ,Q4 2024, out of the N658.40 billion billed to customers.
This was disclosed in NERC’s 2024 Fourth Quarter Report, published on its website in Abuja. According to the report, this translates to a collection efficiency of 77.44%, marking an improvement from the previous quarter.
In Q3 2024, DisCos collected N466.69 billion from the N626.02 billion billed, resulting in a 74.55% collection efficiency. The latest figures indicate a 2.89 percentage point increase in efficiency between Q3 and Q4 of 2024.
Eko DisCo maintained its lead with the highest collection efficiency at 90%, followed by Ikeja DisCo at 82.63%, both retaining their top positions from Q3 2024.
Jos DisCo recorded the lowest efficiency at 49.68%, reflecting persistent challenges in revenue collection.
The report highlighted that eight DisCos improved their collection efficiency between Q3 and Q4 of 2024, with Yola and Kano DisCos recording the most significant gains.
However, three DisCos saw declines, with Jos and Abuja DisCos experiencing the sharpest drops in efficiency.
NERC attributed the overall improvement to: Enhanced metering initiatives, reducing energy theft and improving billing accuracy, Stricter enforcement of collections by some DisCos and Increased customer compliance due to regulatory measures.
Despite the progress, the report noted that non-payment and energy theft remain major hurdles, particularly in regions with lower collection rates. The commission reiterated its commitment to sanctions and incentives to drive further improvements in 2025.
The rise in DisCos revenue signals a positive trend for Nigeria’s power sector, which has long struggled with liquidity issues. However, experts argue that sustained reforms, including cost-reflective tariffs and infrastructure upgrades, are necessary to ensure long-term stability.
NERC’s report comes amid ongoing discussions about electricity tariff adjustments and the need for DisCos to reduce Aggregate Technical, Commercial, and Collection ,ATC&C, losses.
Stakeholders anticipate further regulatory interventions to boost collection efficiency, including:
Expanded metering programs under the National Mass Metering Initiative. Digital payment solutions to ease customer remittances. Stronger penalties for defaulting customers.
The efficiency rate of Discos decreased by 4.76 percentage points, dropping from 79.31% in Q2 to 74.55% in Q3.
In Q3, DisCos collected N466.69 billion out of the N626.02 billion billed to customers, compared to N431.16 billion collected from N543.64 billion billed in Q2, the report noted.
In the same vein, all 11 electricity distribution companies, also known as DisCos, recorded over N146bn revenue shortfalls in the fourth quarter of 2024, a report by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission ,NERC, has said.
The report released on the commission’s website on Monday said the Distribution Companies ,DisCos, collectively collected ₦509.84bn from a total of ₦658.4b billed to customers, translating into a collection efficiency of 77.44%.
While this reflects an improvement of 2.89 percentage points compared to the 74.55% recorded in Q3 2024, the gap between billed and collected revenue still poses significant financial challenges.
Also, in the same quarter, DisCos faced a cumulative upstream invoice payable of ₦408.86bn.
This included ₦360.97bn for generation costs from the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Company ,NBET, adjusted for differences between remittances and obligations ,DRO, and ₦47.89bn for transmission and administrative services provided by the Market Operator ,MO.
Out of this obligation, the DisCos remitted ₦378.93bn, comprising ₦336.63bn paid to NBET and ₦42.30bn to the MO. This left an outstanding balance of ₦29.92bn.
The remittance performance for Q4 2024 was 92.68%, a notable increase from the 83.77% recorded in Q3, signalling better efforts to meet financial obligations. However, the lingering shortfall continues to strain the liquidity of the power sector.
“The total revenue collected by all DisCos in 2024/Q4 was ₦509.84bn out of ₦658.40bn billed to customers.
This translates to a collection efficiency of 77.44 per cent, representing an increase of 2.89 percentage points compared to 2024/Q3 , 74.55%.
“In 2024/Q4, the cumulative upstream invoice payable by DisCos was ₦408.86bn, consisting of ₦360.97bn for DRO-adjusted generation costs from NBET2 and ₦47.89bn for transmission and administrative services by the Market Operator ,MO.
“Out of this amount, the DisCos collectively remitted a total sum of ₦378.93bn ,₦336.63bn for NBET and ₦42.30bn for MO, with an outstanding balance of ₦29.92bn.
“This translates to a remittance performance of 92.68% in 2024/Q4 compared to the 83.77% recorded in 2024/Q3. The disaggregated DisCo remittance performance to the market for 2024/Q4″, the report stated.
The report also highlighted the debts owed by bilateral customers, both international and domestic. Six international bilateral customers who purchase electricity from grid-connected generation companies ,GenCos, collectively paid $5.21m in Q4 2024.
This was against the total invoice of $14.05m issued to them by the market operator for services rendered during the quarter.
The significant difference underscores the growing debt from international customers, with over $8.84m outstanding.
On the domestic front, bilateral customers were invoiced ₦1.977bn for electricity consumed in Q4 2024 but paid only ₦1.252bn, leaving an unpaid balance of ₦724.44m.
“In 2024/Q4, the six international bilateral customers purchasing power from the grid-connected GenCos made a cumulative payment of $5.21m against the $14.05m invoice issued to them by the MO for services rendered in 2024/Q4.
“Similarly, the domestic bilateral customers made a cumulative payment of ₦1,252.58 million against the ₦1,977.02 million invoice issued to them by the MO for services rendered in 2024/Q4 3″, the report stated further.
During the period under review, DisCos received a total of 7,420.58 gigawatt-hours ,GWh, in Q4 2024, while 6,207.84 GWh was billed to end-user customers.
This translates into a billing efficiency of 83.66%, an improvement of 1.51 percentage
