Nigeria’s electricity distribution companies lost an estimated ₦187 billion to unbilled power between July and October 2025, deepening concerns over inefficiencies that continue to weaken the country’s power market, according to data from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
NERC’s commercial performance factsheets show that Distribution Companies (DisCos) consistently failed to bill customers for a large share of electricity received from the national grid, despite rising energy supply during the period.
Billing Efficiency and Revenue Leakages
In July, DisCos received electricity worth ₦300.04 billion but billed only ₦243.14 billion. This left ₦56.9 billion unbilled and placed billing efficiency at 81.04%.
August showed mild improvement. Billing efficiency rose to 83.85%, yet ₦45.97 billion worth of electricity was still not billed. September recorded the strongest performance, with billing efficiency increasing to 86.43%. Even then, losses remained high at ₦37.91 billion.
The gains did not last. In October, DisCos billed ₦255.19 billion out of ₦303.85 billion received. This left ₦48.66 billion unbilled and dragged billing efficiency down to 83.99%. NERC noted that this represented a 2.45 percentage point decline from September, despite higher energy supply.
Wide Gaps Across Distribution Zones
Performance varied sharply across the country. Kano DisCo recorded the highest billing efficiency at 98.05%, followed by Eko at 95.71% and Ikeja at 94.36%.
At the lower end, Benin DisCo billed just 65.32% of energy received. Yola and Ibadan followed at 66.03% and 73.51% respectively, meaning more than a quarter of supplied electricity in those areas went unbilled.
Even larger operators struggled. Abuja DisCo billed ₦38.93 billion out of ₦46.32 billion received, while Enugu DisCo billed ₦20.95 billion from ₦26.11 billion supplied.
Analysts blamed the losses on poor metering, estimated billing, electricity theft, network losses, and weak operations.
Collection Losses Add to Pressure
Billing problems were made worse by weak collections. Of the ₦255.19 billion billed in October, DisCos collected only ₦210.92 billion. This left ₦44.27 billion unpaid and put collection efficiency at 82.66%.
Overall recovery efficiency stood at 82.49%, reflecting losses from both unbilled and uncollected electricity.
Collection performance also differed widely. Ikeja DisCo recorded 102.07%, helped by recovery of old debts. Eko achieved 93.50%, while Abuja reached 88.35%. In contrast, Jos collected just 38.98%, Kaduna 43.03%, and Kano 58.67%.
Despite an approved average tariff of ₦116.25 per kilowatt-hour in October, DisCos realised an average of only ₦95.89/kWh. Only Ikeja and Eko exceeded their allowed tariffs.
Experts warned that these gaps threaten market stability, as DisCos are expected to remit payments to Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc and other market players based on billed and collected revenue. Consumer groups say the losses often return to customers through higher tariffs and estimated bills.
Read also: NERC report: DisCos lose N44bn in October as billing, collection gaps widen
