Business
Power generation falls 37% as DISCOs lose N129bn, record 184,024 complaints
•As Nigerians, businesses groan over 3,885.72MW generation;
•NERC: Metering, billing, supply interruptions dominate complaints
•DISCOs’ ATC&C losses hit 36.23% in Q2
By Ediri Ejoh
Nigerians and businesses are set to grapple with worsening electricity supply as power generation yesterday plunged by 37.17 per cent to 3,885.72 megawatts (MW), even as electricity consumers filed 184,024 complaints against Distribution Companies (DISCOs) in the first half of 2026.
The latest development came barely two weeks after the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, announced that power generation had peaked at 5,330MW in August and September, raising concerns over the sustainability of recent gains in the power sector.
The generation decline, according to data obtained from the Nigerian Independent System Operator, NISO, is expected to further worsen supply across distribution networks, with households and businesses increasingly forced to rely on generators amid rising operating costs and petrol prices.
The situation is coming against the backdrop of persistent challenges in the distribution segment, with the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, reporting that metering, billing and service interruptions remained the major complaints by electricity consumers during the second quarter of 2026.
According to NERC’s latest second-quarter report, complaints received across all DISCO customer complaint units increased marginally by 0.86 per cent to 92,407 in Q2’26 from 91,617 in Q1’26, bringing the total complaints in the first half of the year to 184,024.
The Commission stated: “Across the quarter, DISCOs successfully resolved 117 out of the 146 complaints that were filed at the NERC CCU; this translates to a resolution rate of 80.13 percent.
“The number of complaints received across all DISCO-CCUs was 92,407, which represents a 0.86 percent increase compared to the 91,617 received in 2026/Q1.
“As in previous quarters, metering, billing and service interruption were the prevalent issues of customer complaints during the quarter.”
Meanwhile, Ikeja Electric, in a circular obtained by Vanguard via its X page and signed by its management, attributed the reduced hours of electricity supply across its network to a shortfall in power allocated to it from the national grid.
The company said the shortfall had resulted in reduced hours of supply to customers.
The circular stated: “We wish to inform customers across Ikeja Electric network that the reduced hours of electricity supply is due to a shortfall in the amount of power currently allocated to our network from the national grid.
“We understand the inconvenience this may cause and sincerely appreciate your patience and understanding.
“Please be assured that we are actively engaging the relevant stakeholders to improve the available power supply and will continue to distribute the power received from the grid as efficiently and equitably as possible.”
The worsening supply situation also highlights the financial challenges confronting the distribution companies.
NERC reported that the weighted average Aggregate Technical, Commercial and Collection (ATC&C) loss across the DISCOs stood at 36.23 per cent in Q2’26, significantly above the 2026 Minimum Remittance Order (MYTO) target of 16.92 per cent.
The losses comprised 21.33 per cent technical and commercial losses and 18.94 per cent collection losses, translating into a cumulative revenue loss of N129.073 billion across the DISCOs.
Although ATC&C losses declined by 1.21 percentage points from 37.44 per cent in Q1’26, NERC said all the DISCOs missed their targets during the quarter.
Kaduna DISCO recorded the largest underperformance, with actual ATC&C losses of 67.70 per cent against a target of 18.18 per cent.