Nigeria’s electricity sector still has more than five million customers without prepaid meters, according to new figures released by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission.
The commission disclosed in its January and February 2026 metering factsheet that 5.1 million of the country’s 12.31 million active electricity users were yet to be metered as of February 2026. The figure represents about 41 per cent of all active customers nationwide.
Data from the report showed that only 7.21 million consumers had prepaid meters installed by the end of February, leaving millions still dependent on estimated billing.
Although the national metering rate improved slightly from 57.93 per cent in January to 58.57 per cent in February, the increase followed the deployment of 121,798 new meters within the month.
Among electricity distribution companies, Abuja Electricity Distribution Company recorded one of the strongest performances, posting a metering rate of 79.37 per cent in February.
Eko Disco and Ikeja Electric also achieved high coverage rates of 87.62 per cent and 87.16 per cent respectively, while Port Harcourt Disco stood at 66.36 per cent.
Benin, Ibadan and Enugu distribution companies recorded 56.75 per cent, 52.23 per cent and 51.83 per cent respectively.
However, the report identified Yola, Jos, Kaduna and Kano distribution companies as the least metered operators in the country.
Yola Disco had the lowest metering rate at 31.86 per cent. Jos recorded 34.04 per cent, while Kano and Kaduna posted 35.37 per cent and 35.59 per cent respectively.
The report also showed that Abuja Disco installed 18,352 new meters in February. Benin and Ibadan distribution companies added 25,658 and 16,445 meters respectively during the same period.
