The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has disclosed that electricity distribution companies (DisCos) failed to collect N97.63 billion in March 2026, despite receiving a total energy allocation valued at N293.76 billion during the period under review.
The figures were contained in the March 2026 Commercial Performance Factsheet, which provides an overview of the financial and operational performance of the 11 DisCos across the country.
According to the report, the DisCos billed customers N246.43 billion in March, recording a billing efficiency of 83.89 per cent. This indicates that a significant portion of the energy received was successfully translated into customer billing, though not fully optimised.
The commission also stated that collection efficiency stood at 79.59 per cent, with total revenue collected amounting to N196.13 billion for the month.
On overall performance, NERC noted that the industry achieved a recovery efficiency of 81.05 per cent, representing a slight improvement of 0.38 per cent compared to the previous month.
In terms of performance among distribution companies, Ikeja Electric recorded the highest recovery efficiency at 99.30 per cent, followed by Eko DisCo at 95.73 per cent and Benin DisCo at 85.18 per cent.
At the lower end of the performance scale, Kaduna DisCo recorded 38.54 per cent, Jos DisCo posted 57.94 per cent, while Yola DisCo recorded 69 per cent, making them the least efficient in bill collection during the period.
NERC further revealed that electricity tariffs during the period included a government subsidy component of N23.55 per kilowatt-hour. The allowed average tariff was N124.30 per kilowatt-hour, while the actual average collection stood at N100.75 per kilowatt-hour.
The allowed tariff level remained unchanged from the previous month, following adjustments that saw rates rise from N85.97 per kilowatt-hour recorded in January.
The report highlights ongoing challenges in Nigeria’s electricity distribution sector, particularly around revenue collection inefficiencies, infrastructure constraints and consumer payment compliance, which continue to affect the financial sustainability of the power industry.
