BREAKING: Nigerian Authorities Delist 1.9 Million Electricity Customers For Inactivity In One Year

A SaharaReporters review of data from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has revealed that 1.9 million customers were delisted from the Commission's database between March and June 2025.

As of March 2025, the number of electricity customers in the country stood at 13.7 million, but had fallen to 11.8 million by June 2025.

According to the document, inactive customers are those who have not been billed or vended at least once in a year.

In April, the NERC announced that it had carried out rebasing to feature only active electricity consumers.

Nigeria continues to struggle with stable power supply despite significant investments in the energy sector.

Earlier, SaharaReporters reported that a review of the second-quarter report released by NERC revealed that 5.4 million customers of electricity distribution companies (DisCos) across the country were yet to be metered.

According to the report, at the end of the second quarter of 2025 (June), the number of metered customers stood at 6.4 million, while the total number of customers served by distribution companies was 11.8 million.

This situation persists amid widespread complaints from Nigerians over the high cost of electricity, largely due to estimated billing.

It was also reported that the country’s electricity generation dropped in the second quarter of 2025.

For instance, "the average hourly generation on the grid in 2025/Q2 was 4,501.06MWh/h, which translates to a total generation of 9,830.31GWh."

"The average hourly generation of the grid-connected power plants decreased by 269.53MWh/h (-5.65%) from 4,770.59MWh/h in 2025/Q1," a statement by the NERC further read.

"The total electricity generated in the quarter also decreased by 474.15GWh (-4.60%) from 10,304.47GWh in 2025/Q1."

It was further noted that "the decrease in energy generation during the quarter can be attributed to the decrease in energy offtake by the grid-connected customers (including DisCos) compared to 2025/Q1."

There have been growing concerns over accountability regarding the numerous investments made in Nigeria’s electricity sector.

In May 2024, the World Bank approved a $500 million loan to support Nigeria’s power sector.