FG ends manufacturers’ dispute, to deploy 1.56 million meters before year-end

The Federal Government says it will roll out 1.56 million electricity meters before the end of 2026 after resolving a legal dispute with local meter manufacturers that had stalled procurement and installation activities for several months.

Minister of Power Joseph Tegbe disclosed this during a media interactive session in Lagos on Friday, revealing that the government had reached an agreement with the Association of Meter Manufacturers of Nigeria (AMMON), leading to the withdrawal of a court injunction that halted the metering programme.

According to the minister, the resolution clears the way for the nationwide deployment of smart meters aimed at reducing Nigeria’s metering gap and improving electricity billing.

What the Minister is saying

Tegbe said the dispute stemmed from demands by local manufacturers for a larger share of meter supply contracts under the government’s metering programme.

He noted that while the government remains committed to President Bola Tinubu’s “Nigeria First” policy by supporting local manufacturing, it must also ensure sufficient capacity to meet the country’s metering needs.

• “For the last six months to one year, AMMON, the meter manufacturers association, took the Federal Government to court because the people manufacturing meters in Nigeria wanted to be able to supply meters,” he said.
• “We encourage that because Mr. President encourages Nigeria First. But again, you must have the capacity to meet Nigerians’ needs. So, we have a blend of international procurement and local procurement,” he added.

According to the minister, the court injunction prevented the government from procuring, supplying and installing meters over the past six months.

The resolution

Tegbe said the government engaged with the association over the past three weeks, resulting in an amicable resolution of the dispute.

• “We successfully calmed them down. We’ve resolved it. They’ve lifted the injunction.”
• “We’ve signed a new agreement with them. We have 1.56 million meters to be rolled out before the end of this year with their support,” the Minister said.

The minister did not provide details of the new agreement but indicated that the rollout would proceed with the cooperation of local manufacturers.

Backstory

The announcement comes about a month after the World Bank warned that a lawsuit filed by the Association of Meter Manufacturers of Nigeria had become the biggest implementation risk facing the $500 million Nigeria Distribution Sector Recovery Programme (DISREP).

As earlier reported by Nairametrics, the legal action secured an injunction that halted the procurement of 1.55 million additional smart meters under the programme’s second phase of international competitive bidding.

The World Bank warned that prolonged litigation could force the cancellation of the procurement, delaying efforts to reduce Nigeria’s metering gap and improve electricity distribution.

The lender had also disclosed that the Bureau of Public Enterprises could not execute contracts for 217,000 locally procured meters until the court case was resolved, while bid submission deadlines for the international procurement had been extended multiple times.

With the injunction now lifted, the Federal Government expects the rollout of 1.56 million meters to resume before the end of the year, potentially removing one of the biggest obstacles to the implementation of the World Bank-backed metering programme.

What you should know

The Nigeria Distribution Sector Recovery Programme was approved in February 2021 to improve the financial and technical performance of electricity distribution companies and is scheduled to run until May 2028.

Nairametrics earlier reported that Nigeria cancelled $717.7 million in undisbursed funding under the World Bank-backed Power Sector Recovery Performance-Based Operation (PSRO), marking a major setback for efforts to restore financial sustainability in the country’s electricity sector amid rising tariff deficits, foreign exchange pressures, and persistent operational inefficiencies.