The Federal Government and state governments have pooled together N100bn to procure prepaid electricity meters, a move aimed at enhancing transparency and reducing the contentious issue of estimated billing.
This initiative, championed under the Presidential Meter Initiative (PMI), was disclosed by the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, during a press briefing in Ibadan, Oyo State.
The minister emphasised that the PMI is a critical part of President Bola Tinubu’s broader strategy to reform Nigeria’s power sector, focusing on reducing the significant meter deficit that has plagued electricity consumers across the country.
“Out of the over 12 million electricity customers in Nigeria, only a little over five million are currently metered,” Adelabu revealed, underscoring the enormity of the challenge.
He attributed the widespread reluctance among customers to pay their electricity bills to the mistrust generated by estimated billing practices, which many believe are arbitrary and inflated by the power distribution companies (DisCos).
The PMI, according to the Minister, aims to procure and install at least two million meters annually over the next five years.
“Mr. President has established a Presidential Metering Council, of which I am the chairman, with a mandate to close the metering gap.
“ We have made significant progress, with N100bn already raised to kick-start the procurement process,” Adelabu stated.
In addition to local efforts, the World Bank has pledged its support, allocating $200m of the $500m Distribution Sector Recovery Programme (DISREP) fund to meter procurement.
Adelabu noted that contract awards for this initiative have already been issued, with the first batch of meters expected to arrive before the end of the year.
The minister also highlighted the liberalisation of metre sales, which now allows DisCos to enable their customers to purchase meters directly from vendors.
However, he acknowledged the rising cost of meters, attributing it to the fluctuations in the exchange rate.
“The price of meters has increased from around N80,000 to approximately N120,000, reflecting the current economic realities,” he said.
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