The Distribution Companies (Discos) operating in Nigeria posted a sharp 40 per cent year-on-year revenue increase in April 2025, amid a total billing of N257.57 billion for the month.
This is according to data sourced from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
It was disclosed that in the period under review, the billing rose to about N1.02 trillion, but under-recovery hit N260 billion, reflecting persistent payment challenges among consumers, growing energy poverty, and uneven service delivery.
For the month under review, Eko Disco collected 100 per cent of its revenue, which hit N38.7 billion, rising by 28.82 per cent; Ikeja collected N34.68 billion, with a revenue rise of 6.1 per cent, while Abuja Disco got M30.27 billion, a 4.3 per cent drop.
One of the most pressing concerns remains the Aggregate Technical, Commercial, and Collection (ATC&C) losses, which stood at an average of 39.6 per cent in Q1 2025. This is nearly double the 20.5 per cent target set under the Multi-Year Tariff Order (MYTO), resulting in estimated revenue losses of ₦200.5 billion.
NERC also said the government undertook to cover the resultant gap (between the cost-reflective and allowed tariff) in the form of tariff shortfall funding, which amounted to a total of N1.95 trillion in 2024.
The report, however, did not state whether or not the subsidy had to be paid by the federal government.
Further analysis of the report showed that in the first quarter of last year, the gross tariff subsidy incurred by FG was N633 billion, in Q2 2024, the tariff shortfall dropped to about N380 billion, in Q3 same year, the shortfall climbed to N464 billion, and by Q4, the tariff shortfall had climbed further to N471 billion.
The NERC indicated that for the month under consideration, the electricity utility companies raked in N199.85 billion, a record in recent times.
According to NERC, despite the record sum collected, it translated to a collection efficiency of 77.6 per cent, an improvement on March’s 71.1 per cent collection rate, still falling short of the funding needed to ensure full liquidity and sustainability in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).
Of this, the volume of electricity billed to customers stood at 2,184.61 GWh, a decline of 5.8 per cent, signalling that that the revenue jump was not driven by improved energy delivery, but largely by higher end-user tariffs, especially for Band A customers, who are billed what has been described as cost-reflective rates of approximately N209 per kilowatt-hour, following the April 2024 adjustment from the previous N66/kWh.