Neighbouring West African countries, Benin and Togo, have failed to pay over half of what they owe Nigeria for electricity supplied in the second quarter of 2025, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has revealed.
According to the commission’s Second Quarter 2025 Report, six international bilateral customers who receive electricity from Nigeria’s generation companies remitted only $9.01 million out of a total $17.54 million invoice issued by the Market Operator during the period.
This leaves an outstanding balance of about $8.53 million, representing a 51.33 per cent remittance performance.
A breakdown of the report obtained by PLATFORM TIMES showed that Benin’s Société Béninoise d’Énergie Électrique (SBEE), Togo’s Compagnie Energie Electrique du Togo (CEET), and Niger’s NIGELEC were among the main international buyers of electricity from Nigeria.
While Mainstream Energy Solutions received $2.59 million out of the $3.71 million invoice issued to NIGELEC — a 69.8 per cent remittance rate — CEET made no payment at all for its $4.31 million bill during the period under review.
Similarly, SBEE, which buys electricity from Transcorp Power Ltd. and Paras Energy, also defaulted on parts of its payment obligations.
“The six international bilateral customers being supplied by GenCos in the NESI made a payment of $9.01m against the cumulative invoice of $17.54m issued by the Market Operator for services rendered in Q2 2025, translating to a remittance performance of 51.33 per cent,” NERC stated.
The regulator added that domestic bilateral customers also performed poorly, paying N1.4 billion out of the N2.8 billion invoiced to them — representing a 50.10 per cent remittance rate.
Of all contracts reviewed, only Transcorp (Ughelli)–SBEE achieved full payment, settling its entire $5.47 million invoice. Others, including Paras–SBEE, Paras–CEET, and Odukpani–CEET, made no payments throughout the quarter.
NERC further disclosed that only one domestic bilateral customer — Trans-Amadi (OAU/FMPI) — made a partial settlement for outstanding invoices from previous quarters, remitting N10.53 million.
The commission warned that the continued shortfall in payments from both international and domestic customers was undermining the liquidity of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).
It stressed that generation companies and the Market Operator depend on prompt remittances to sustain grid operations and ensure reliable power supply.
“The persistent low remittance level continues to threaten the sustainability of the power sector and the ability of GenCos to maintain generation levels,” NERC warned in the report.
The report underscores a growing concern over Nigeria’s cross-border electricity agreements, which have faced criticism for yielding low returns despite the country’s unstable domestic supply.
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