Nigeria’s Electricity Metering Gap Hits 5.4 Million Despite Government Schemes and New Presidential Initiative

By Okafor Joseph | July 29, 2025 | SpringnewsNG Media Limited

Nigeria continues to grapple with a massive electricity metering deficit, with over 5.4 million active customers still without meters despite more than a decade of government intervention programs and the ongoing power sector privatization.

The latest factsheet from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) for April 2025 revealed that 46.37% of electricity consumers remain unmetered, translating to just 6,274,936 metered customers out of 11,700,422 nationwide. This leaves the national metering rate at 53.63%, highlighting persistent reliance on the controversial estimated billing system.

Wide Metering Disparities Across Discos

Analysis of NERC’s report shows stark differences among the 12 electricity Distribution Companies (Discos):

• Top Performers (Green Zone):
  • Ikeja Electric (83.77%)
  • Eko Disco (81.62%)
  • Abuja Disco (71.65%)
• Lowest Performers (Red Zone):
  • Yola Disco (28.53%)
  • Jos Disco (29.33%)
  • Kaduna Disco (33.35%)
  • Kano Disco (34.76%)

Despite government‑backed metering programs, including the National Mass Metering Programme (NMMP) launched in 2020, only 77,634 new meters were installed nationwide in April 2025—a fraction of the millions still required to eliminate estimated billing.

Slow Progress Despite Multiple Schemes

Since the 2013 power sector privatization, successive governments have launched initiatives to close the metering gap:

• 2013 Post‑Privatisation Metering Mandate: Discos were tasked with metering customers but failed to invest adequately.
• 2020 NMMP: A CBN‑funded plan to distribute 6 million free meters; progress slowed due to funding delays and local manufacturing constraints.
• 2023 Presidential Metering Initiative (PMI): Targeting 10 million meters in five years, with a minimum of 2 million meters annually, supported by ₦75 billion seed capital and World Bank’s DISREP program.

Minister of Power Adebayo Adelabu insists the current administration is accelerating solutions:

“Our target is to procure and install a minimum of 2 million meters annually for five years, closing the gap completely and making billing fair and transparent,” Adelabu said.

Rising Consumer Frustration

NERC’s April 2025 report also highlighted growing consumer dissatisfaction:

• 78,483 complaints recorded in April alone
• 42% related to metering, followed by billing (23%) and service interruptions (9%)
• Kano Disco received the highest metering complaints (7,358), while Ibadan Disco led overall complaints at 14,849

Consumer advocacy groups argue that full metering is essential to restore trust, improve energy planning, and end the exploitative estimated billing system. They urge federal authorities and Discos to address operational inefficiencies and accelerate meter rollouts.

Outlook

With the Presidential Metering Initiative and international financing partnerships underway, the government projects full metering coverage by 2028. However, current installation rates suggest the metering gap will persist in the short term, leaving millions of Nigerian households and businesses vulnerable to opaque electricity billing.