In 2023, international customers from Niger, Benin, and Togo paid Nigeria’s Electricity Supply Industry $50.36 million, achieving a 94.04% remittance performance. While international customers showed robust financial responsibility, domestic customers fell short with an 84.94% payment rate, highlighting persistent challenges in Nigeria’s electricity distribution framework.
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has recently published a report detailing the payments made by international customers from Niger, Benin, and Togo for electricity supply from Nigeria in 2023. The report reveals that these countries collectively paid $50.36 million, achieving an impressive remittance performance of 94.04% against a total invoice of $53.55 million. The entities involved in these transactions include: – Societe Beninoise d’Energie Electrique (Benin Republic) – Compagnie Energie Electrique du Togo (Togo) – Societe Nigerienne d’Electricite (Niger) In addition to the international customer payments, data from NERC indicates that Nigeria’s Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) is managing 19 active domestic bilateral customers, who received invoices totaling N10,320.84 million. These domestic customers have made payments amounting to N8,766.15 million, yielding a remittance performance of 84.94%. This indicates a shortfall of 15.06% in the total expected remittances from these domestic entities. It is noteworthy that last year, the Nigerian Federal Government reported that international electricity consumers had an outstanding debt of approximately $51.26 million for electricity supplied to them. To address the challenge of these debts, the government mandated system operators in the Nigerian power sector to limit electricity supply to international customers to no more than 6% of the total available grid generation per hour. This regulation aims to protect Nigeria’s energy resources while ensuring compliance amongst international buyers who rely on Nigerian electricity.
The electricity transactions between Nigeria and its neighboring countries, Niger, Benin, and Togo, underscore the essential role Nigeria plays in the regional energy sector. The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) monitors these transactions, providing insight into the financial dynamics of cross-border electricity supply. Despite high remittance rates by recent standards, a lingering debt from international customers and gaps in payments from domestic consumers reveal ongoing challenges in the sector. The government’s intervention through regulatory measures aims to strengthen the financial stability of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) and ensure equitable distribution of electricity resources.
In summary, the NERC’s 2023 report highlights significant electricity payment transactions from Niger, Benin, and Togo, illustrating a strong remittance performance of 94.04%. Despite this success, an alarming trend is noted with domestic consumers’ outstanding payments, which could impact Nigeria’s overall electricity distribution strategy. The intervention by the Federal Government to regulate supply to international customers reflects a proactive approach to managing outstanding debts in the energy sector.
Original Source: politicsnigeria.com
