With over 5.4m Deficit, Electricity Metering Gap Persists Despite Multiple Govt Schemes

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

Despite repeated assurances and several intervention schemes introduced in the last 12 years of the power sector privatisation, Nigeria’s electricity metering gap remains stubbornly wide, with over 5.4 million active customers still without metering devices.

Data from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) revealed that more than 46 per cent of electricity consumers in the country remain unmetered, underscoring the persistent challenges in eliminating estimated billing and ensuring fair and accurate electricity charges.

According to the latest factsheet released by NERC for April 2025, only 6,274,936 out of Nigeria’s 11,700,422 active electricity customers are currently metered, translating to a national metering rate of 53.63 percent. 

While some Distribution Companies (Discos) have made modest gains, the overall progress falls short of expectations given the scale of investments, both public and private, that have gone into metering projects over the years.

In the whole of April, a total of 77,634 new meters were installed, a figure consider insignificant compared to the millions of customers still subjected to the controversial estimated billing system. The persistent metering gap not only affects consumer trust but continues to fuel tensions between electricity providers and the general public.

A closer examination of the metering status across the 12 electricity Distribution Companies (Discos) indicated wide disparities in performance among the top three and the bottom three.

Ikeja Electric (IE) led the top pack with a metering rate of 83.77 per cent, followed by Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDC) at 81.62 per cent, and Abuja Disco at 71.65 per cent. These three companies fell within what NERC classified as the “green zone,” indicating a relatively satisfactory metering performance.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Yola Disco recorded the lowest metering rate at just 28.53 per cent. Other poor performers include Jos (29.33 per cent), Kaduna (33.35 per cent), and Kano (34.76 per cent), all of which have more than two-thirds of their customers still relying on estimated billing.

The data further showed that Benin and Ibadan Discos, despite having large customer bases, also fall within the amber zone with metering rates of 50.08 per cent and 48.96 per cent respectively. Enugu Disco is similarly placed with a rate of 46.26 per cent, while Port Harcourt Disco reported a slightly better figure at 61.31 per cent.

However, THISDAY’s checks showed that the metering gap persists in spite of numerous government-backed efforts, including the National Mass Metering Programme (NMMP), which was launched in 2020 to bridge the shortfall in consumer metering. 

The initiative, funded through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), aimed to provide up to 6 million free meters to Nigerians over several phases. However, progress has been slow, often impeded by logistical delays, procurement bottlenecks, and a lack of sustained coordination between federal authorities and the Discos.

Consumer advocacy groups have called on the federal government and NERC to intensify efforts toward full metering, arguing that electricity remains one of the few utilities in Nigeria where consumers often pay for services not actually consumed. They contend that the lack of meters hampers transparency, makes energy planning difficult, and leads to widespread consumer dissatisfaction.

But on several occasions, the Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, although has repeatedly emphasised the urgency of bridging the metering deficit, has insisted that the efforts and acceleration of the current government in the sector have not been witnessed before now.

According to the minister, President Bola Tinubu’s administration has moved beyond mere rhetoric. “That’s why the Presidential Metering Initiative (PMI) was established. We plan to install over 10 million meters within the next five years, at least two million meters annually,” Adelabu said recently.

He added: “The target is to procure a minimum of 2 million meters on annual basis for the next five years, that’s about 10 million meters, which we believe will completely eliminate the existing metre gap and billing will become transparent, it will become objective, and it will become fair and just to our people.”

In addition to metering, the NERC factsheet also shed light on customer service standards and complaints received by Discos across the country.

It showed that a total of 78,483 complaints were recorded in April, with metering issues accounting for 42 per cent, billing disputes representing 23 per cent, service interruptions contributing 9 per cent, and miscellaneous complaints comprising the remaining 26 per cent.

Ibadan Disco, which has over 2.35 million customers, received the highest number of complaints at 14,849, more than any other operator. It was followed by Port Harcourt Disco (14,744), Eko (13,378), and Ikeja (6,415). 

The preponderance of complaints about metering reflected the growing dissatisfaction among customers still under estimated billing regimes, which many have long described as exploitative and opaque.

Kano Disco, with a metering rate of only 34.76 percent, recorded the highest number of metering complaints at 7,358, further illustrating the deep-seated frustrations of consumers in under-metered zones. 

Conversely, Benin Disco received only 72 metering complaints despite having more than 962,000 active customers. The reason for this unusually low figure is unclear, suggesting underreporting or limited access to customer feedback mechanisms.

Besides, the factsheet showed that Discos like Jos, Kaduna, and Yola, which have poor metering coverage, also struggled with customer service efficiency. These operators received thousands of complaints during the period under consideration.

The metering deficit in Nigeria did not begin with the Bola Tinubu administration. Since the privatisation of the power sector in 2013, successive governments have introduced one metering scheme after another. Each has promised to close the gap, but the results have often fallen short of expectations.

The first major effort came after the 2013 privatisation, when the new distribution companies were given responsibility for customer metering. However, most of the Discos failed to make the necessary investments in infrastructure, and many abandoned or delayed meter rollouts. 

In 2020, the Muhammadu Buhari administration launched the National Mass Metering Programme (NMMP), designed to provide free meters to Nigerians and phase out estimated billing. The initiative, backed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), aimed to deliver 6 million meters in phases and also waived import duties to speed up procurement. 

While the programme saw some success in its initial stages, it ultimately fell behind schedule due to funding delays, local manufacturing constraints, and poor coordination with the Discos.

The Tinubu government in 2023, formally introduced the Presidential Metering Initiative (PMI), a centrally coordinated scheme designed to install at least 10 million meters over a five-year period. 

With an initial seed capital of N75 billion and yearly financial support from the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), the initiative aims to close the metering gap completely by 2028.

To support this goal, the government has partnered with the World Bank under the Nigeria Distribution Sector Recovery Programme (DISREP), which is expected to deliver an additional 3.5 million meters across the country. However, the results from those efforts remain very slow.