Benin Republic and Togo Owe Nigeria $8.84 Million for Electricity in Q4 2024

Benin Republic and Togo have an outstanding electricity debt of $8.84 million to Nigeria for power consumed in the fourth quarter of 2024, according to a report from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

The report detailed payments made by both domestic and international bilateral customers for invoices issued during the period by the Market Operator. It revealed that six international customers supplied by Nigerian power generation companies (Gencos) collectively paid $5.21 million out of a total invoice of $14.05 million, reflecting a remittance rate of 37.08%.

Among the international customers, Paras-SBEE in Benin paid $2.65 million, while Paras-CEET, also in Benin, paid $1.64 million. Transcorp-SBEE (Ughelli) in Benin settled $1.71 million out of its $3.59 million invoice, while Transcorp-SBEE (Afam 3) paid $0.90 million out of its $1.2 million bill. Meanwhile, Odukpani-CEET in Togo still owes $2.37 million. The only international company that fully paid its invoice was Mainstream-NIGELEC, which settled its $2.60 million bill.

For domestic bilateral customers, a total of ₦1.25 million was paid against an invoice of ₦1.98 million, translating to a 63.36% remittance performance. Some international customers—Paras-CEET, Paras-SBEE, and Transcorp-SBEE—also made partial payments toward outstanding invoices from previous quarters, contributing $0.98 million, $0.7 million, and $1.3 million, respectively.

Additionally, domestic customers made payments of ₦135.81 million toward past-due invoices, with contributions from NDPHC-Weewood (₦21.17 million), North South/Star Pipe (₦11 million), Taopex (₦83 million), and Trans-Amadi (OAU/FMPI) (₦20.74 million).

The report also noted that Ajaokuta Steel Company Ltd. and its host community failed to make any payments toward their ₦1.27 billion (NBET) and ₦0.11 billion (MO) invoices for Q4 2024, continuing a pattern of non-payment. NERC stated that it has called for government intervention on this issue.

Meanwhile, Nigerian electricity distribution companies (DisCos) generated ₦509.84 billion in revenue in Q4 2024, which represents 77.44% of the ₦658.40 billion billed to customers. This marks an improvement from Q3 2024 when DisCos collected ₦466.69 billion out of ₦626.02 billion billed, with a collection efficiency of 74.55%. The 77.44% recorded in Q4 reflects a 2.89 percentage point increase from the previous quarter.