The federal government says it is set to deliver 1.3 million electricity meters between December and the second quarter of 2025.
Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, disclosed this at the ongoing Nigeria Energy Summit holding in Lagos.
He said the first batch of the meters will arrive in Nigeria in December, while the second batch will be received in the second quarter of next year.
According to the minister, this is part of the federal government’s efforts to close the seven million meter gap and ensure transparency in billing.
“We have over 13 million customers, but just a little over 5 million are metered. Where is it done that over seven million customers will rely on estimated billing? It is fraudulent, it is not transparent, and it can never be acceptable in a sane country. But we cannot close this gap in one year.
“We are talking of over seven million meters to be imported, to be produced locally. The meter gap is a big elephant we must all join hands to fight and bring down.”
Continuing, Adelabu said: “To address this, we launched the presidential metering initiative together with the Nigeria Governors Forum, and state governments are now part of this, supported by the World Bank Distribution Sector Reform Programme aimed to disburse 3.2 million meters, out of which I can confirm to you authoritatively that 1.3 million meters have been procured, contract signed and the payment made.
“We are expecting the first set of the meters to be delivered by December 2024, and the balance will be delivered by the second quarter of next year.”
The minister expressed optimism that the addition of 1.3 million meters would aid billing efficiency and reduce the disagreements between the power distribution companies and their customers.
Adelabu expressed confidence that the power sector could generate N2 trillion in 2024, from N1 trillion in 2023, saying this would be made possible by the ongoing reforms, especially the Band A tariff review.
He added that if the amount spent on diesel and petrol for independent power generation is going into the power sector, there would be up to N5 trillion yearly revenue to provide infrastructure, replace dilapidating transformers, and fix broken lines.
Adelabu maintained that the metering initiative would reduce estimated billing, enhance transparency, and improve sector liquidity by ensuring that energy consumers are billed.
He noted that the integrated national electricity policy will be ready in the next four weeks when it will be submitted to the Federal Executive Council.
