FG Spends ₦471.69 Billion on Electricity Subsidy in Q4 2024 – NERC Report
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FG Spends ₦471.69 Billion on Electricity Subsidy in Q4 2024 – NERC Report
The Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) spent a staggering ₦471.69 billion on electricity subsidies in the fourth quarter of 2024 (Q4 2024), according to the latest report by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
The subsidy accounted for 57% of the total energy generated within the period, arising from the suspension of the end-use customer tariff at the rates payable in July 2024.
NERC disclosed this in its “Quarterly Report 2024,” stating:
“The NBET invoice payable by the DisCos for 2024/Q4 was only ₦360.97 billion because the FGN has taken responsibility for ~57% (₦471.69 billion) of the total generation costs in the form of subsidies arising from the freezing of end-use customer tariffs at the rates payable in July 2024.”
The report also highlighted payments made by local and international bilateral customers to settle outstanding Market Operator (MO) invoices from previous quarters.
According to the data, international bilateral customers paid $2.98 million, while domestic bilateral customers paid ₦135.81 million.
NERC revealed that electricity distribution companies (DisCos) collected ₦509.84 billion in Q4 2024, out of the ₦658.40 billion billed to customers, achieving a 77.44% collection efficiency.
This was a slight improvement compared to Q3 2024, when DisCos collected ₦466.69 billion out of ₦626.02 billion, with a 74.55% efficiency rate.
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The top-performing DisCos in Q4 2024 in terms of collection efficiency were Eko DisCo with 90.00% and Ikeja DisCo with 82.63%. Conversely, Jos DisCo recorded the lowest collection efficiency at 49.68%.
The report further noted that eight DisCos improved their collection efficiency, with Yola (+13.93pp) and Kano (+9.88pp) DisCos showing the most progress. However, three DisCos experienced declines, with Jos (-3.61pp) and Abuja (-3.39pp) DisCos seeing the biggest drops.
NERC’s report underscores the government’s financial burden in sustaining electricity supply, while also highlighting improvements and inefficiencies in revenue collection across DisCos.
