In the first quarter of 2024, the Federal Government’s expenditure on electricity subsidies soared to over ₦633.30 billion, according to recent findings.
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission’s quarterly report revealed that this figure marks a substantial 150.5% increase compared to the ₦252.76 billion spent in the last quarter of 2023.
The subsidy payments for the first quarter alone surpass the ₦628.61 billion total for the entire year of 2023.
The breakdown of the ₦633.30 billion expenditure shows that the government spent ₦36.02 billion in the first quarter, ₦135.23 billion in the second quarter, ₦204.6 billion in the third quarter, and ₦252.76 billion in the fourth quarter of 2023.
The report attributes the surge in subsidy costs to the government’s policy of aligning exchange rates and the lack of cost-reflective tariffs implemented by electricity distribution companies (DisCos).
The absence of these tariffs has resulted in the government incurring an average monthly subsidy obligation of ₦211.10 billion.
Regarding revenue collection, the report indicates a shortfall, with DisCos generating ₦291.62 billion in revenue out of the ₦368.65 billion billed to customers.
The total energy received by all DisCos was 7,171.93 GWh, with 5,769.52 GWh billed to end-users, resulting in an overall billing efficiency of 80.45%.
Ikeja DisCo led the revenue collection with ₦57.88 billion, followed by Eko DisCo with ₦48.74 billion. In contrast, Yola DisCo collected the lowest revenue at ₦5.46 billion.
Other notable collections included Abuja DisCo with ₦48.60 billion, Ibadan DisCo with ₦30.35 billion, Benin DisCo with ₦22.46 billion, Enugu DisCo with ₦21.24 billion, and Port Harcourt DisCo with ₦20.39 billion.
Kano DisCo collected ₦13.62 billion, Jos DisCo ₦13.29 billion, and Kaduna DisCo ₦9.60 billion.
