Nigeria’s neighbours owe N25bn for Electricity Supply — NERC

Nigeria’s neighbouring countries, Togo, Niger, and Benin, owe a combined $17.8 million (about N25.36 billion) for electricity supplied under bilateral agreements, according to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

In its Third Quarter (Q3) 2025 report, NERC disclosed that the three countries were invoiced $18.69 million by the Market Operator (MO) for electricity supplied during the quarter but remitted only $7.125 million, leaving an unpaid balance of $11.56 million.

The commission also revealed the existence of legacy debts from previous periods. Outstanding invoices from earlier quarters totalled $14.7 million, of which $7.84 million was paid, leaving a balance of $6.23 million.

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Combined with the Q3 2025 shortfall, the total outstanding debt stands at $17.8 million, equivalent to N25.36 billion at an exchange rate of N1,425 per dollar.

According to NERC, the international customers involved are Compagnie Énergie Électrique du Togo (CEET), Société Béninoise d’Énergie Électrique (SBEE) of Benin, and Société Nigérienne d’Électricité (NIGELEC) of Niger.

“The three international bilateral customers being supplied by GenCos in the NESI made a payment of $7.12m against the cumulative invoice of $18.69m issued by the MO for services rendered in 2025/Q3, translating to a remittance performance of 38.09 per cent,” NERC stated.

This means that more than 60 per cent of the electricity bill for the quarter remained unpaid.

The electricity supplied to these countries is generated by grid-connected Nigerian generation companies (GenCos) and transmitted through cross-border arrangements.

In contrast, domestic bilateral customers showed significantly stronger payment performance. They remitted N3.19 billion out of a total invoice of N3.64 billion for Q3 2025, representing a remittance rate of 87.61 per cent.

NERC added that payments were also made toward debts from previous quarters, noting that the Market Operator received $7.84 million from international bilateral customers and N1.3 billion from domestic bilateral customers for earlier invoices.

Meanwhile, Nigeria’s 11 electricity distribution companies (DisCos) remitted a total of N381.29 billion to the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc (NBET) and the Market Operator during Q3 2025.

This was against a cumulative invoice of N400.48 billion, resulting in a remittance performance of 95.21 per cent.

The commission explained that the figures are based on reconciled market settlements submitted as of December 18, 2025, as part of its ongoing assessment of the commercial performance of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).