Nigeria’s electricity customer grows to 11.27 million

The number of electricity-paying customers in Nigeria has increased by 1.89% in Q1 2023, from 11.06 million to 11.27 million. This is likely due to the impending tariff adjustments, as customers are preparing to pay more for electricity. The number of metered customers also increased by 3.61% to 5.31 million, which is further evidence of customer’s willingness to pay for electricity.

Distribution companies saw a revenue boost of 20.81% in Q1 2023, collecting N247.33 billion. This is likely due to the increase in the number of paying customers and the higher tariffs. However, the electricity supply experienced a slight decline on a year-on-year basis.

Rising customers

The NBS in its report noted  On a year-on-year basis, customer numbers in Q1 2023 rose by 5.99% from 10.63 million reported in Q1 2022, they said:

• “Total customer numbers in Q1 2023 stood at 11.27 million from 11.06 million in Q4 2022, showing an increase of 1.89%. On a year-on-year basis, customer numbers in Q1 2023 rose by 5.99% from 10.63 million reported in Q1 2022.

Metered Customers

They added that metered customers stood at 5.31 million in Q1 2023, indicating a growth of 3.61% from 5.13 million recorded in the preceding quarter, adding:

• “On a year-on-year basis, this grew by 10.86% from the figure reported in Q1 2022 which was 4.79 million.
• “In addition, estimated customers during the quarter were 5.96 million in Q1 2023, higher by 0.40% from 5.93 million in Q4 2022. On a year-on-year basis, estimated customers increased by 1.99% in Q1 2023 from 5.84 million in Q1 2022.”

Revenue

The report disclosed that revenue earned by distribution companies also rose compared with figures from the preceding quarter, they said:

• “Revenue collected by the DISCOs during the period was N247.33 billion from N232.32 billion in Q4 2022. On a year-on-year basis, revenue generated in the reference period rose by 20.81% from N204.74 billion recorded in Q1 2022.
• “ Electricity supply was 5,852 (Gwh) in Q1 2023 from 5,611 (Gwh) in the previous quarter. However, on a year-on-year basis, electricity supply declined by 1.74% compared to 5,956 (Gwh) reported in Q1 2022.”

New bills

According to an article published by RNN, Nigeria’s electricity costs are predicted to increase as a result of the naira’s depreciation at the investor and exporter window due to the naira’s unification.

With this new structure, the exchange rate will be significantly influenced by market forces like supply and demand.

These modifications were made as a part of a larger initiative to increase stability and liquidity in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange (FX) Market. All transactions under the new policy must go through the Investors and Exporters (I&E) window, where market forces will decide the exchange rate.

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