DisCos collected N199.90bn out of N295.69bn billed to customers in Q1 2022 – NERC
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) said electricity distribution companies (DisCos) in Nigeria averaged a collection efficiency of 67.36% in Q1 2022.
The commission further disclosed that revenue earned during the period was N199.90 billion, out of N295.69 billion billed to customers.
These and more information were disclosed by NERC in its first quarter 2022 report released on Friday and seen by Nairametrics.
The report noted that there were twenty-six (26) grid-connected power stations in 2022/Q1 consisting of nineteen (19) gas, four (4) hydro, two (2) steam, and one (1) gas/steam-powered plants.
Commercial Performance: NERC said DisCos achieved a billing efficiency of 77.38%., they said:
“The total energy received by all DisCos in 2022/Q1 was 7,300.05GWh while the power billed to the end-use customers was 5,649.21GWh indicating an average billing efficiency of 77.38%. This billing efficiency is an increment of +1.02 pp from the 76.56% recorded in 2021/Q4.
“The total revenue collected by all DisCos in 2022/Q1 was ₦199.90 billion out of ₦295.69 billion billed to customers —this corresponds to a collection efficiency of 67.36%, representing a 1.98 pp reduction compared to 2021/Q4 where the average collection efficiency was 69.34%. In monetary terms, although the billing in 2022/Q1 reduced by ₦7.41 billion (-2.44%), revenue collections reduced at a higher rate – ₦10.98 billion (-5.22%).”
NERC noted that DisCos must employ technologies and operational procedures to increase both their billing and collection performances to forestall long-term financial challenges.
“These could include holistic energy accounting procedures, customer and infrastructure metering,“ they added.
The report declared Discos had commercial losses of 47.88% comprising aggregate technical and commercial loss (23.44%) and collection loss (30.66%).
“The ATC&C loss increased by +0.97 pp compared to 2021/Q4 (46.91%). All DisCos did not meet their allowed ATC&C loss targets as specified in the MYTO —this means that all DisCos exceeded their efficient loss targets and thereby could not earn the revenue requirement upon which their approved tariffs for the period were set.”
They warned that consistently incurring these inefficient losses could prevent the DisCos from meeting their upstream market obligations and have adverse effects on their long-term financial positions.
Available generation capacity: There were twenty-six (26) grid-connected power stations in 2022/Q1 consisting of nineteen (19) gas, four (4) hydro, two (2) steam, and one (1) gas/steam-powered plants.
“The plants’ average available generation capacity during the quarter was 4,712.34MW representing a 13.78% decrease (-753.38MW) compared to 5,465.72MW recorded in 2021/Q4” they added.
