Nigeria’s electricity Distribution Companies (Discos) recovered ₦208.15 billion from customer billings of ₦252.87 billion in May 2026, achieving a collection efficiency of 82.32 percent, according to the latest commercial performance factsheet released by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission.
The report, however, showed that while electricity distributors slightly increased customer billings during the month, their overall ability to recover the approved value of electricity supplied weakened as revenue recovery efficiency declined to 77.31 percent, down from the previous month.
According to NERC, the Discos received electricity valued at ₦328.95 billion in May, representing an 8.58 percent increase compared to April. Of this amount, only ₦252.87 billion, equivalent to 76.87 percent of the energy received, was billed to customers, leaving nearly one-quarter of the electricity supplied outside the billing system.
The regulator noted that the billing efficiency of 76.87 percent represented a decline of 6.45 percentage points from April, indicating that commercial losses increased despite the higher volume of electricity distributed across the country.
Out of the total customer bills issued, the electricity distribution companies collected ₦208.15 billion, leaving ₦44.72 billion unpaid during the month. Although collection efficiency improved by 1.66 percentage points to 82.32 percent, NERC said the gains were insufficient to offset weaker billing performance.
The commission explained that the average approved electricity tariff stood at ₦124.39 per kilowatt-hour, while the average amount actually recovered from customers was ₦96.16 per kilowatt-hour. As a result, overall revenue recovery efficiency declined by 4.80 percentage points to 77.31 percent.
Revenue recovery efficiency measures the percentage of the approved tariff that electricity distribution companies are able to recover after accounting for both billing and collection losses.
Among the eleven distribution companies, Ikeja Electric recorded the strongest commercial performance.
The company collected ₦41.51 billion from customer billings of ₦42.67 billion, translating to a 97.28 percent collection efficiency. It also posted the highest revenue recovery efficiency at 94.63 percent, recovering an average of ₦115.73 per kilowatt-hour against an approved tariff of ₦122.30 per kilowatt-hour.
Eko Electricity Distribution Company also maintained a strong performance, recording the highest billing efficiency among all Discos at 90.66 percent after billing ₦40.52 billion from electricity valued at ₦44.69 billion.
The company went on to collect ₦34.59 billion, representing a collection efficiency of 85.37 percent, while achieving a revenue recovery efficiency of 91.54 percent.
Similarly, Abuja Electricity Distribution Company billed ₦42.16 billion from electricity worth ₦51.79 billion and recovered ₦35.94 billion, resulting in a collection efficiency of 85.25 percent and a revenue recovery efficiency of 84.84 percent.
At the lower end of the performance rankings, Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company recorded the weakest revenue recovery.
The Disco billed ₦10.25 billion but collected only ₦5.60 billion, resulting in a collection efficiency of 54.64 percent. Its actual average recovery stood at ₦48.41 per kilowatt-hour, compared with an approved tariff of ₦121.80 per kilowatt-hour, giving it a revenue recovery efficiency of just 39.75 percent.
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Jos Electricity Distribution Company also posted weak commercial performance, recovering ₦5.99 billion from ₦11.70 billion billed, translating to a collection efficiency of 51.20 percent and a revenue recovery efficiency of 45.38 percent.
Likewise, Kano Electricity Distribution Company collected ₦8.05 billion from customer billings of ₦15.77 billion, recording a collection efficiency of 51.04 percent and a revenue recovery efficiency of 49.80 percent.
The latest NERC report underscores the persistent commercial challenges facing Nigeria’s electricity distribution companies, with improved collections from billed customers still outweighed by significant billing losses that continue to reduce overall revenue recovery across the power sector.
