The Federal Government has secured about N700 billion from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) to finance the deployment of 1.1 million electricity meters across Nigeria by December 2025.
The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, announced this on Tuesday in Lagos at the 2025 Nigerian Energy Forum (NEF), themed “Powering Nigeria through Investment, Innovation, and Partnership”, according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
According to the minister, the initiative is part of the Presidential Metering Initiative (PMI), a comprehensive plan to close Nigeria’s metering gap, strengthen revenue assurance, and promote transparency in the electricity supply chain.
He said the PMI complements the 3.2 million meters being procured through the World Bank’s Distribution Sector Recovery Programme (DISREP), positioning the country to bridge the metering gap within five years.
FG leveraging on bilateral funding to attract investment
The minister added that the government was leveraging bilateral funding and development finance to attract private investment and expand electricity access in underserved communities, schools, hospitals, and public institutions.
“In the past two years, more than $2 billion has been mobilised through key programmes, including the World Bank’s DARES, NSIA’s RIPLE, and the JICA fund.
“These interventions are accelerating renewable energy deployment and access to reliable power,” he said.
Adelabu also revealed that agreements signed at the 2025 Nigerian Renewable Energy Innovation Forum would add nearly four gigawatts of solar manufacturing capacity annually, about 80 per cent of Nigeria’s current generation capacity.
“With this level of renewable energy production, Nigeria is on track to meet its domestic transition targets and serve regional power markets,” he said.
Adelabu said the Electricity Act 2023 had transformed the sector by empowering states to establish subnational electricity markets.
“Fifteen states have received regulatory autonomy, with one fully operational.
“We’re ensuring alignment between wholesale and retail markets,” Adebayo noted.
He maintained that tariff reforms had improved supply reliability, reduced industrial energy costs, and boosted sector revenue from N1 trillion in 2023 to N1.7 trillion in 2024, with projections to exceed N2 trillion by 2025.
The minister added that President Bola Tinubu had approved a N4 trillion bond to settle verified debts owed to generation companies and gas suppliers, alongside a targeted subsidy plan to protect vulnerable consumers.
Adelabu reaffirmed the government’s commitment to partnering with the private sector to unlock stranded generation capacity and build a sustainable power future.
“Through sustained investment, innovation, and strong partnerships, we can power Nigeria’s journey toward a brighter, more resilient energy future,” he said.
What you should know
In mid-October, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) approved the disbursement of N28 billion to electricity distribution companies (DisCos) for the procurement and installation of prepaid meters under the Meter Acquisition Fund (MAF) Tranche B scheme.
According to Order No: NERC/2025/107 published on the commission’s website, the MAF provides a financial mechanism for accelerating meter rollout to unmetered customers at no cost, while ensuring a credible revenue stream that supports long-term financing for DisCos.
NERC also reported that DisCos installed a total of 225,631 meters in the second quarter of 2025, marking a 20.55% increase compared to the 187,161 meters installed in the first quarter of the year.
According to NERC’s Second Quarter 2025 Report, of the total meters installed, 147,823 units (65.52%) were deployed under the Meter Asset Provider (MAP) framework, 65,315 meters under the Meter Acquisition Fund (MAF) scheme, 12,259 meters through the Vendor Financed framework, and 234 meters were installed under the DisCo Financed scheme.
Despite this progress, NERC noted that as of June 2025, only 6,422,933 out of the 11,821,194 active registered customers in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) had been metered. This translates to a national metering rate of 54.33%, leaving nearly half of electricity consumers still unmetered and subject to estimated billing.
