Nigeria’s electricity metering rate recorded a gradual improvement in the first four months of 2026, climbing from 57.93 per cent in January to 59.69 per cent in April as electricity distribution companies expanded the rollout of prepaid meters across their networks.
Figures from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission showed that the number of metered customers rose from 7.09 million in January to 7.44 million in April, with more than 349,357 additional customers receiving meters during the period.
The steady increase underscores ongoing efforts by the Federal Government and distribution companies to narrow the country’s metering gap and curb estimated billing. However, despite the progress, over five million active electricity customers were still without meters as of April 2026.
The distribution companies added more than 227,000 customers to the national metering network in March and April, pushing Nigeria’s electricity metering rate closer to 60 per cent, according to the latest data from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission.
The commission’s March and April 2026 Metering Status of Distribution Companies Factsheet showed that the national metering rate rose to 59.69 per cent in April from 59.13 per cent in March, reflecting continued efforts by electricity distribution companies to reduce reliance on estimated billing.
The factsheet, published on NERC’s official X handle on Monday, showed that the number of metered electricity customers increased to 7,435,733 in April from 7,324,079 in March, representing an addition of 111,654 customers within one month.
The latest increase followed the installation of 115,905 meters in March, bringing the total number of newly metered customers added in March and April to 227,559.
NERC’s data showed that Nigeria’s electricity metering rate recorded steady growth in the first four months of 2026, rising from 57.93 per cent in January to 59.69 per cent in April as distribution companies added more than 349,357 customers to the metering network.
The metering rate increased from 57.93 per cent in January to 58.57 per cent in February, 59.13 per cent in March and 59.69 per cent in April.
Despite the improvement, more than five million active electricity customers remained without meters as of April 2026, underscoring the scale of the country’s persistent metering gap.
NERC’s latest data showed that the total number of active customers served by the country’s 11 electricity distribution companies increased from 12,386,848 in March to 12,457,068 in April, reflecting the continued growth of electricity access nationwide.
The figures also revealed that although metering coverage has continued to improve, performance varied widely among the distribution companies, with some DisCos recording substantially higher metering rates than others.
