The federal government is set to begin the distribution of 10 million electricity meters starting in the first quarter of 2025 under the Presidential Metering Initiative (PMI).
Through the PMI, the federal government aims to close the metering gap as well as put an end to estimated billing in Nigeria by providing two million meters every year for the next five years, beginning from next quarter, special adviser to the minister of power on strategic communications and media, Tunji Bolaji, told BusinessDay.
This initiative, which is backed by a budget of N700 billion and collaboration with local manufacturers for meter supply, aims to address the significant metering gap, with only about 5.99 million of the 13.19 million registered customers currently metered.
Available data shows that as of 30th June 2024, only 5,993,340 (45.43 percent) out of the 13,192,573 registered electricity customers across the twelve DisCos had been metered.
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“We are still on course with the Presidential Metering Initiative and we expect delivery of meters to begin by first quarter of next year. The plan is to distribute about two million meters next year and 10 million meters in five years and it will done in tranches,”Bolaji said.
“The government is working with the local manufacturers because the minister, in recent months, has had to inspect the local manufacturers to be sure they can deliver on the project. So we expect meters from the local manufacturers.”
He also disclosed that plans to roll out 3.2 million meters under the World Bank Distribution Sector Reform Program (DISREP) is on course and implementation is expected this month.
Adebayo Adelabu, minister of power, in October, announced that the federal government had procured 1.3 million meters under the DISREP initiative, noting that Nigeria will receive 1.3 million electricity meters between December 2024 and the second quarter of 2025.
This follows the move by Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission in June 2024 to meter all customers under the Band A feeders across the country through the Meter Acquisition Fund (MAF).
