Nigeria's electricity distribution companies (DisCos) improved their revenue collection performance in April 2026, but widespread inefficiencies in billing and revenue recovery continue to undermine the power sector's sustainability, according to the latest performance factsheet published by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) on Tuesday.
Revenue and Billing Performance
The 11 electricity distribution companies collectively received electricity valued at ₦302.96 billion during April. They billed customers ₦252.43 billion, translating to a national billing efficiency of 83.32%. Energy received increased by 3.13% compared to March, while energy billed rose by 2.43%. However, billing efficiency declined marginally by 0.57 percentage points, indicating that a larger share of available electricity remains unbilled.
DisCos collected ₦203.61 billion from the ₦252.43 billion billed, representing a collection efficiency of 80.66%—an improvement of 1.07 percentage points over March. Consequently, average revenue recovered rose to ₦102.13 per kilowatt-hour, against the regulator's allowable average tariff of ₦124.39 per kilowatt-hour. This resulted in a national revenue recovery efficiency of 82.11%, also an improvement on the previous month. However, nearly one-fifth of electricity bills issued nationwide remained unpaid during the month.
Top Performers and Struggling DisCos
Eko Electricity Distribution Company and Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company exceeded NERC's revenue recovery benchmark of 80%. Eko DisCo emerged as the top commercial performer, recording 91.56% and 94.26% in billing and collection efficiencies, respectively, with a revenue recovery efficiency of 102.09%. Port Harcourt DisCo followed with a recovery efficiency of 90.39%, supported by a collection efficiency of 91.41%. Benin (86.65%), Abuja (89.77%), and Ikeja (88.89%) also maintained relatively strong revenue recovery.
In contrast, northern DisCos struggled. Kaduna DisCo posted the weakest revenue recovery nationwide at 43.15%, despite recording the largest month-on-month improvement in collection efficiency. Kano recovered only 51.87% of expected revenue, while Jos achieved 52.48% and Yola 65.07%. Collection efficiency remained particularly weak in Kano (49.89%), Kaduna (55.38%), and Jos (58.93%).
Billing Efficiency Disparities
The report reveals significant disparities in billing efficiency across the country. Enugu DisCo recorded the highest billing efficiency at 92.77%, followed closely by Eko at 91.56%. Conversely, Kaduna billed only 62.81% of electricity received, while Yola and Jos achieved 66.35% and 69.50% respectively. These figures point to continuing metering gaps, energy losses, and operational inefficiencies.
Although national collection efficiency improved, performance across individual DisCos remains mixed. Some companies experienced declining collection performance despite relatively high billing efficiency. Ikeja's collection efficiency declined by 6.41 percentage points, while Kano recorded the sharpest deterioration, falling by 21.15 percentage points. Enugu and Ibadan also experienced declines. In contrast, Kaduna recorded the largest improvement in collection efficiency (an increase of 16.84 percentage points), although its overall performance remains among the weakest nationally.
Structural Challenges
The April figures suggest that Nigeria's electricity distribution segment continues to face structural commercial challenges. Nearly 17% of electricity received goes unbilled, and about 19% of billed revenue remains uncollected nationwide. Only two DisCos surpassed NERC's 80% revenue recovery benchmark, while several operators recovered barely half of expected revenue. These disparities underscore the challenges of metering deficits, energy theft, weak collections, and operational inefficiencies that have long constrained the financial sustainability of Nigeria's electricity market.
Despite significant investments in generation infrastructure, gas supply constraints, maintenance issues, transmission hitches, and ageing grid infrastructure continue to limit effective electricity delivery. Supply shortfalls have forced many households and businesses to resort to expensive solar systems and generators. Spikes in fuel costs following the conflict in the Middle East have further driven up energy costs, making these alternatives largely unaffordable for Nigerians already grappling with a severe cost-of-living crisis.
The newly appointed Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, has vowed that electricity supply will witness notable improvement, though he expressed reservations regarding the immediate prospect of round-the-clock power. Overall, while NERC's April results point to gradual improvements in sector-wide revenue collection, they highlight the significant work required for most electricity distributors to achieve commercial sustainability.
