NERC: Discos Billed Customers N255 Billion, Collected N210.92bn in October

•Billing, recovery efficiencies show mixed trends

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

Electricity Distribution Companies (Discos) in Nigeria collected a total of N210.92 billion in October 2025, according to data released by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) reflecting a 7.48 per cent increase compared with the previous month.

The improvement in collections came amid rising billings, modest gains in efficiency, and wide performance disparities across the 12 Discos, the data showed.

According to the NERC’s factsheet, the commercial performance of Discos showed that total billing for the month stood at N255.19 billion, up by 5.65 per cent, while total energy received by the distribution companies was valued at N303.85 billion, representing an 8.73 per cent increase.

Collection efficiency across the sector improved to 82.66 per cent, a 1.40 percentage-point increase month-on-month, indicating that Discos were able to convert a larger share of billed revenue into actual cash receipts.

Despite this improvement, the gap between total billings and collections remained significant at about N44.27 billion, underscoring persistent challenges around revenue assurance.

On revenue recovery, the allowed average tariff for October was N116.25 per kilowatt-hour, while the actual average collection stood at N95.89 per kilowatt-hour. This resulted in an overall recovery efficiency of 82.49 per cent, representing a 0.96 percentage-point decline compared with the previous month.

Besides, the data suggested that although Discos collected more in absolute terms, recovery relative to cost-reflective tariffs remained under pressure.

In the same vein, a closer look at individual Discos revealed uneven performance. Abuja Disco received energy valued at N46.32 billion and billed N38.93 billion, posting a billing efficiency of 84.05 per cent. It collected N34.39 billion, translating to a collection efficiency of 88.35 per cent, one of the stronger outcomes for the month.

In all, its recovery efficiency stood at 88.30 per cent, supported by an actual average collection of N104.46 per kilowatt-hour against an allowed tariff of N118.30.

Benin Disco billed N19.84 billion out of N30.38 billion received, with a relatively low billing efficiency of 65.32 per cent. However, it recorded a solid collection efficiency of 83.72 per cent, collecting N16.61 billion. Its recovery efficiency was 65.16 per cent, reflecting weaker tariff recovery despite improvements in billing.

Further analysis indicated that Eko Disco remained one of the best performers in terms of billing, with a billing efficiency of 95.71 per cent and total billings of N40.29 billion. It collected N37.67 billion, yielding a collection efficiency of 93.50 per cent for the month. Notably, Eko achieved a recovery efficiency of 101.65 per cent, as its actual average collection of N120.28 per kilowatt-hour exceeded the allowed tariff of N118.33, largely due to the settlement of outstanding bills from previous months.

Also, Enugu Disco billed N20.95 billion from N26.11 billion received, with a billing efficiency of 80.23 per cent. Collections stood at N16.91 billion, resulting in a collection efficiency of 80.74 per cent. Recovery efficiency was lower at 77.67 per cent, reflecting continued tariff shortfalls.

Ibadan Disco recorded billings of N26.70 billion and collections of N22.56 billion, translating to a collection efficiency of 84.49 per cent. However, its recovery efficiency remained subdued at 74.16 per cent, despite an improvement compared with September.

Ikeja Disco stood out as the only operator with a collection efficiency above 100 per cent, at 102.07 per cent, having collected N42.11 billion against billings of N41.26 billion. This performance was mirrored in its recovery efficiency of 108.17 per cent, supported by an actual average collection of N124.07 per kilowatt-hour versus an allowed tariff of N114.70.

At the lower end of the spectrum, Jos and Kaduna Discos continued to struggle. Jos Disco collected just N5.26 billion from billing of N13.50 billion, resulting in a collection efficiency of 38.98 per cent and a recovery efficiency of 42.28 per cent. Kaduna Disco fared only slightly better, with collections of N5.43 billion from N12.63 billion billed, translating to a collection efficiency of 43.03 per cent and a recovery efficiency of 43.70 per cent.

Although Kano Disco recorded strong billing efficiency at 98.05 per cent, it collected only N10.22 billion from N17.42 billion billed, yielding a collection efficiency of 58.67 per cent and a recovery efficiency of 68.65 per cent. Port Harcourt Disco posted a collection efficiency of 87.07 per cent and recovery efficiency of 82.97 per cent, while Yola Disco recorded 69.35 per cent collection efficiency and 77.21 per cent recovery efficiency.

Overall, despite the October data highlighting progress in revenue collection, as evidenced by the N210.92 billion haul, it also underscored structural weaknesses in billing accuracy, tariff recovery, and customer payment discipline.