Togo, Benin, and Niger Accumulate $11m Power Debt to Nigeria

​Neighbouring West African nations—Togo, Benin, and Niger—accumulated an outstanding balance of $11.16 million in unpaid electricity bills for power supplied by Nigerian generation companies under bilateral arrangements throughout 2025.

​According to the 2025 annual report released by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), the Market Operator (MO) issued cumulative invoices totaling $73.91 million to the three international power offtakers. Out of this amount, $62.75 million was successfully remitted, translating to an 84.90 percent remittance performance for the year.

​The affected international utilities comprise the Compagnie Énergie Électrique du Togo (CEET), Société Béninoise d’Énergie Électrique (SBEE) of Benin, and Société Nigérienne d’Électricité (NIGELEC) of Niger. Cross-border electricity trade has historically served as a diplomatic and economic tool within the sub-region, though persistent liquidity and payment compliance challenges continue to pressure the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).

​In contrast, domestic bilateral customers demonstrated a stronger compliance level during the review period. NERC figures indicate that domestic bilateral offtakers paid ₦12.75 trillion out of ₦13.20 trillion invoiced by the Market Operator, achieving a 96.60 percent remittance performance.

​However, severe concerns persist regarding the classification of special customers, notably the Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited and its host community in Kogi State. The commission revealed that the moribund steel complex made zero payments against electricity invoices issued throughout 2025, leaving an outstanding debt comprising a ₦4.96 billion bill from the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc (NBET) and another ₦500 million obligation to the Market Operator.

​Calling attention to the continuous default, NERC disclosed that the matter has been escalated to relevant federal ministries for urgent intervention. The regulatory body cautioned that persistent non-payment exposes the complex to the immediate risk of total disconnection from the national grid by service providers.

​On domestic distribution network performance, NERC reported that the country’s eleven electricity distribution companies (DisCos) collectively off-toke 31,251.77 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of energy in 2025, while billing customers for 25,867.86 GWh. This culminated in a national energy accounting efficiency (EAE) of 82.77 percent.

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​Disaggregation of the distribution metrics showed wide performance margins across franchise areas. Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company recorded the highest energy accounting efficiency at 88.84 percent, while Enugu Electricity Distribution Company lagged behind with the lowest efficiency at 72.18 percent.

​To bridge commercial losses and improve liquidity, NERC charged DisCos with formulating robust operational strategies. The commission emphasized that optimizing distribution infrastructure, curbing technical and commercial losses, enhancing customer enumeration, ramping up meter deployment, and deploying modern anti-theft technologies remain vital to transforming sector performance.