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By Daniel Adaji
An analysis of electricity distribution companies’ (DisCos) expenditure has revealed that N77,665,698 was incurred on capital projects in 2017 and 2018 without regulatory approval from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
The findings are contained in a document titled “Analysis of Operational Expenditure (Opex), Capital Expenditure (Capex), and Meter Assets Provider (MAP) Policy,” sent to NERC and obtained by Pointblanknews.com from a source.
The report was prepared in response to a Freedom of Information request made by the Law Hub Development and Advocacy Centre.
According to the NERC data, no capital expenditure was approved for the DisCos in 2017 and 2018. Yet, N38,567,821 was incurred in 2017 and N39,097,877 in 2018, totalling over N77m. The source of the funds remains unclear.
Between 2014 and 2023, NERC approved N898,389,149 for Capex. However, actual spending by DisCos during the same period stood at N411,497.56, leaving N486,891,588 unaccounted for. In 2023, no capital expenditure was recorded for Benin, Enugu, Ibadan, Ikeja, Jos, Kaduna, Kano, Port Harcourt and Yola DisCos, raising further questions.
Under the Meter Assets Provider policy (2018–March 2025), 2.33 million meters were installed, and 1.23 million refunds were processed. From January 2024 to February 2025, total operational expenditure reached N1.74bn.
Metering gaps
The report also sheds light on the implementation of the Meter Assets Provider (MAP) policy, introduced in 2018. As of 31 March 2025, the total number of meters installed by the eleven DisCos under the policy was 2,334,418, with 1,234,992 refunds to customers and a Meter Acquisition Fund (MAF) count of 41,855.
A breakdown shows that DisCos in the 19 northern states — Abuja, Jos, Kaduna, Kano and Yola — installed 516,555 meters, with 201,407 refunds processed. In the southern states — Aba, Benin, Eko, Enugu, Ibadan, Ikeja and Port Harcourt — installations stood at 1,817,863 meters, with 1,033,583 refunds.
Given Nigeria’s size — 36 states, 774 local governments and over 200 million people — the figures raise concerns about metering coverage and data reliability in the power sector. The report calls for verification of both installations and refunds under MAP, as well as MAF figures.
Operational expenditure
From January 2024 to February 2025, NERC data shows that DisCos’ fixed operational expenditure amounted to N173,057,059, administrative operational expenditure to N784,971,500.72, and variable operational expenditure to the same figure — N784,971,500.72. Guaranteed administrative operational expenditure stood at N93,191,940.14, bringing the total operational expenditure for the period to N1,739,000,057.45.
At the time of filing this report, NERC had not responded to Pointblanknews.com’s enquiry regarding the unapproved N77m expenditure and other discrepancies flagged in the analysis.