Nigeria’s electricity generation rose to 10,304.47GWh in Q1 2025, marking a 10.92% increase from 9,289.95GWh in Q4 2024, according to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) quarterly report for Q1 2025, released on Monday.
NERC in its report attributed the growth to improved generation capacity and higher offtake by power distributors (DisCos).
The average hourly generation climbed to 4,770.59MWh/h, up from 4,207.41MWh/h in the previous quarter, a 13.39% rise. The increase reflects enhanced operational performance across 28 grid-connected power plants, including hydro, steam, open-cycle, and combined-cycle gas turbines.
Generation Capacity Rises as Grid Stability Holds
According to the report, Average available generation capacity increased by 1.32% to 5,366.88MW in Q1 2025, up from 5,296.89MW in Q4 2024. Fifteen power plants recorded improved availability, boosting the grid’s ability to meet demand.
This uptick in capacity, paired with increased energy offtake from DisCos and bulk customers, contributed significantly to the 1,014.52GWh growth in total generation.
The report noted that the grid maintained operational stability in terms of frequency and voltage throughout the period.
DisCos’ Energy Offtake Up by 12.53%
DisCos’ average energy offtake reached 3,781.94MWh/h in Q1, a 12.53% increase from the 3,360.77MWh/h recorded in Q4 2024. This strong performance translated into a 97.94% utilization of the available Partially Contracted Capacity (PCC), indicating a more efficient distribution of generated power.
However, despite increased energy receipts, DisCos billed end users only 6,631.92GWh out of the 8,169.00GWh received, resulting in a billing efficiency of 81.18%, down from 83.66% the previous quarter.
Revenue Collection Drops Amid Higher Losses
Total revenue collected by DisCos stood at ₦553.63 billion out of ₦744.27 billion billed, reflecting a 74.39% collection efficiency. This is a 3.05 percentage point decline from 77.44% in Q4 2024, deepening concerns about financial sustainability.
Aggregate Technical, Commercial and Collection (ATC&C) losses surged to 39.61%, up from 35.22%, and far above the 20.54% MYTO benchmark. This resulted in an estimated ₦200.5 billion revenue loss. Kaduna DisCo was the worst performer with an actual loss rate of 68.57% against a target of 21.32%.
Market Remittance Improves Despite Outstanding Bills
DisCos remitted ₦414.26 billion out of a ₦432.13 billion invoice from NBET and the Market Operator, achieving a 95.86% remittance rate, an improvement from 92.68% in Q4. However, bilateral and international customers fared poorly. International customers paid only 33.70% ($5.8 million of $17.24 million), while domestic bilateral customers settled 72.24% of their invoices.
Metering, Complaints and Safety Concerns Persist
Meter installations rose slightly to 187,194 units in Q1 2025 by 0.41%, with metering coverage improving to 46.98%. Most installations (79.44%) were done under the MAP framework.
Across the quarter, DisCos resolved 1,554 out of the 4,169 complaints that were filed at the NERC-CCU, a resolution rate of 37.27%.
Billing disputes, service interruptions, and metering issues were dominant in the 254,404 complaints lodged.
The sector also recorded 31 accidents resulting in 14 injuries and 12 deaths. According to NERC Investigations have been launched into all the accidents and will continue to work stakeholders to enhance health and safety compliance across the industry.
