Nigerians Pay N208.15bn for Electricity in one month as NERC Reveals Top and Worst DisCos
- Nigerian electricity consumers paid N208.15 billion for power in May 2026, while DisCos’ revenue collection efficiency rose to 82.32%
- Billing efficiency fell to 76.87%, despite electricity supplied to DisCos increasing by 8.58% to N328.95 billion
- Ikeja Electric led revenue recovery at 94.63%, while Kaduna DisCo recorded the lowest performance at 39.75%
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Legit.ng journalist Victor Enengedi has over a decade's experience covering energy, MSMEs, technology, banking and the economy.
Electricity consumers across Nigeria paid a combined N208.15 billion for power supplied in May 2026, even as electricity distribution companies (DisCos) recorded stronger revenue collection despite a drop in billing efficiency.
The figure was contained in the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission’s (NERC) Commercial Performance Factsheet for May 2026, which showed that the 11 DisCos received electricity worth N328.95 billion during the month.
Source: UGC
The amount represented an 8.58 per cent increase from the N302.99 billion recorded in April.
Billing efficiency declines as collections rise
According to the report, electricity worth N252.87 billion was billed to customers in May, representing a billing efficiency of 76.87 per cent.
This marked a decline of 6.45 percentage points from the previous month.
Despite the weaker billing performance, the sector recorded an improvement in revenue collection efficiency, which rose to 82.32 per cent from 80.66 per cent in April.
The higher collection rate helped the DisCos generate N208.15 billion from customers, representing a 2.23 per cent increase compared with the previous month.
NERC also put the industry’s revenue recovery efficiency at 77.31 per cent in May, reflecting the share of allowable revenue recovered by the distribution companies.
The average allowed tariff stood at N124.39 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), while the actual average collection was N96.16/kWh, representing a 5.85 per cent decline in average revenue collected per unit of electricity.
Ikeja, Eko lead revenue recovery
Ikeja Electric recorded the strongest revenue recovery performance among the DisCos, with an efficiency rate of 94.63 per cent.
Eko DisCo followed with 91.54 per cent, while Abuja DisCo recorded 84.84 per cent.
Port Harcourt DisCo posted a recovery efficiency of 81.46 per cent, while Benin, Enugu, Ibadan and Yola recorded rates between 66.35 per cent and 76.19 per cent.
Source: UGC
At the bottom of the ranking were Kaduna DisCo with 39.75 per cent, Jos DisCo with 45.38 per cent and Kano DisCo with 49.80 per cent.
The performance highlights continued disparities in revenue recovery across Nigeria’s electricity distribution network, with some DisCos still facing significant challenges in converting billed electricity into actual revenue.
Source: Legit.ng
