Electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) generated a combined ₦801.16 billion in revenue from electricity consumers between January and April 2026, despite prolonged blackouts and unstable power supply across the country.
According to the latest commercial performance factsheets released by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), the 11 electricity distribution companies collected ₦204.74 billion in January, ₦196.68 billion in February, ₦196.13 billion in March, and ₦203.61 billion in April, bringing total collections for the four-month period to ₦801.16 billion.
During the same period, the DisCos issued electricity bills totaling ₦1.01 trillion but recovered only ₦801.16 billion, leaving an outstanding ₦207.77 billion in unpaid revenue.
The collections came amid widespread electricity shortages that affected homes and businesses nationwide. The disruptions were largely attributed to inadequate gas supply, which significantly reduced power generation and led to extensive load shedding, particularly in February and March.
NERC’s data showed that in January, customers were billed ₦268.20 billion, with ₦204.74 billion recovered, representing a billing efficiency of 79.72% and a collection efficiency of 76.34%.
In February, billings dropped to ₦242.29 billion, while collections stood at ₦196.68 billion, improving billing efficiency to 87.44% and collection efficiency to 81.17%.
For March, total billings reached ₦246.43 billion, with ₦196.13 billion collected. Billing and collection efficiencies were 83.89% and 79.59%, respectively.
By April, electricity bills rose to ₦252.43 billion, while revenue collections increased to ₦203.61 billion, leaving ₦48.82 billion uncollected. Billing efficiency stood at 83.32%, with collection efficiency improving slightly to 80.66%.
The regulator also noted that substantial volumes of electricity supplied to the DisCos remained unbilled during the period, highlighting persistent metering gaps and commercial losses within the power sector.
Among the distribution companies, Eko Electricity Distribution Company emerged as one of the strongest performers, recording a recovery efficiency of 102.09% in April. Port Harcourt, Abuja, Ikeja, and Benin DisCos also posted recovery efficiencies above 85%.
In contrast, Kaduna, Kano, and Jos DisCos continued to record weaker performances. Kaduna achieved a recovery efficiency of 43.15%, while Kano and Jos posted 51.87% and 52.48%, respectively.
The revenue growth occurred against the backdrop of a significant decline in electricity generation during the first quarter of the year. Poor gas supply forced several thermal power plants to either shut down or reduce output, causing national electricity generation to fall from around 4,000 megawatts to below 2,000 megawatts at certain periods.
Data from the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) indicated that thermal power plants require about 1,629.75 million standard cubic feet of gas per day to operate efficiently. However, as of February 23, actual gas supply stood at only 692 million standard cubic feet per day, representing less than 43% of the sector’s daily gas requirement.
