Nigeria produced 901.94 GWh less of power overall in the first quarter of this year than it did in the fourth quarter of 2023.
This shows a 9.1% decrease from 9,789.87GWh in 2023/Q4 to 8,887.93GWh throughout the studied period.
According to the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission’s (NERC) first-quarter report for 2024, there was an 8.22% decrease in the average hourly power generation across all available generation units during that quarter.
According to the report, the nation’s average available generation capacity fell to 4,249.10MW in the first quarter of 2024 across all power plants, representing a fall of 13.68% (or 673.16MW) from the 4,922.26MW reported in the fourth quarter of 2023.
It clarified that the decrease was brought about by 17 of the 27 grid-connected power plants that were reported in the first quarter of 2024 having lower generation capacity than they had in the prior quarter.
The report reads, “In 2024/Q1, the average hourly generation of available units decreased by -8.22% (-364.25MWh/h) from 4,433.82MWh/h in 2023/Q4 to 4,069.57MWh/h. The total electricity generated in the quarter also decreased by -9.21% 1 (- 901.94GWh) from 9,789.87GWh in 2023/Q4 to 8,887.93GWh (Figure B). The decrease in gross energy generation during the quarter was primarily due to the decrease in the available generation capacities of the grid-connected power plants compared to 2023/Q4.”
Discos’ energy usage and revenue-generating
Additionally, compared to the 3,713.16MWh/h recorded in the fourth quarter of 2023, the average energy offtake by Distribution Companies (DisCos) at their trading locations in Q1 2024 decreased to 3,283.87MWh/h, a decrease of 429.29MWh/h, or 11.56%.
The revenue Discos got from final consumers climbed by 5.32% points from 73.79% in the fourth quarter of 2023 to 79.11% in the quarter under review, despite the fact that their average energy offtake decreased in the first quarter. Out of the N368.65 billion billed during the quarter, energy distribution firms received a total of N291.62 billion in payments.
Installation of meters throughout the quarter
A total of 123,604 meters were erected between January and March 2024, which is an increase of 7.31% and 8,423 more installations than the 115,181 meters installed in the fourth quarter of 2023.
The Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) saw a 0.40 percentage point increase in net end-user metering rate, from 44.39% in the fourth quarter of 2023 to 44.79% in the first quarter of 2024, as a result of the increase in installations.
Complaints of electricity users
Distribution Companies (DisCos) received 291,380 complaints from customers in the first quarter of 2024, which is 19,337 less complaints (6.22%) than the 310,717 complaints DisCos received in the fourth quarter of 2023.
According to the data, over 75% of all customer complaints during the quarter were about billing, metering, and service outages. These concerns were the most frequently reported by customers.
