The Federal Government has announced it will deliver the first batch of over 3.2 million electricity meters as part of efforts to address the country’s over 7 million-unit metering gap.
In a statement released on Sunday, Bolaji Tunji, Special Adviser on Strategic Communications and Media Relations to the Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, revealed that 75,000 meters from the International Competitive Bid 1 (ICB1) are expected to be delivered by April 2025. A second batch of 200,000 meters will follow in May 2025.
“While challenges remain, the facts present a balanced picture of sustained effort, financial commitment, and structured implementation plans by the Federal Government to close the metering gap,” Tunji said.
He further noted that, as of December 2024, 5,502,460 customers—around 55% of Nigeria’s 10,114,060 active electricity customers—had been metered, with 572,050 meters installed in 2024 alone. Despite ongoing challenges, the government remains committed to addressing the metering gap as quickly as possible.
Adelabu added, “While the metering gap persists, a significant portion of active electricity users already have meters, countering exaggerated claims of an industry in crisis.”
The government has averaged the installation of approximately 668,000 meters per year and is now accelerating efforts to close the gap through structured financing and government-backed initiatives. Key interventions include the Distribution Sector Recovery Programme (DISREP), which aims to deliver 3,205,101 meters by 2026, and the N700 billion Presidential Metering Initiative (PMI), designed to fast-track meter procurement and deployment.
“DISREP will deliver meters through several procurement models, including 1,437,501 meters via ICB1, 217,600 via National Competitive Bid (NCB), and 1,550,000 via ICB2. The first batch of 75,000 meters under ICB1 is expected by April 2025, with the second batch of 200,000 meters following in May 2025,” the statement explained.
Additionally, the PMI, which has secured funding from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), is set to procure and deploy two million meters annually for five years, with tenders for the first batch expected by the third quarter of 2025.
These structured interventions are expected to improve Nigeria’s metering landscape significantly in the coming year, with the minister emphasizing that the focus should be on the effective execution of these plans, rather than blanket criticism that overlooks the progress being made.
“The metering gap remains a concern, but claims it will take over a decade to resolve are misleading. With the DISREP and PMI initiatives, we expect substantial progress before the year’s end,” the minister added.
