By Seun Ibiyemi
Three West African countries—Benin, Togo and Niger have collectively defaulted on $9.55 million (approximately ₦12.87 billion) in payments for electricity supplied by Nigeria in the fourth quarter of 2025.
This is according to the latest report released by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), which detailed remittance performance by both international and domestic electricity customers.
The report revealed that Nigeria billed a total of $20.44 million to international bilateral customers in the three countries during the period under review.
However, only $10.89 million was paid, representing a remittance performance of 53.28 per cent.
“The three international bilateral customers being supplied by GenCos in the Nigerian electricity supply industry made a payment of $10.89m against the cumulative invoice of $20.44m issued by the Market Operator for services rendered in 2025/Q4,” the report stated.
The shortfall of $9.55 million highlights ongoing challenges in recovering payments for electricity exports, even as Nigeria grapples with domestic power shortages.
The defaulting entities include Société Béninoise d’Energie Electrique (SBEE), Compagnie Energie Electrique du Togo (CEET), and Société Nigerienne d’Electricite (NIGELEC), which received power through various Nigerian generation companies.
Performance across contracts varied significantly. Paras-SBEE in Benin paid 68.16 per cent of its $2.45 million invoice, while Paras-CEET in Togo remitted 64.97 per cent of its $2.18 million bill.
Transcorp-SBEE (Ughelli) recorded one of the poorest performances, paying just 12.30 per cent of its $3.74 million invoice.
Conversely, Transcorp-SBEE (Afam 3) achieved a stronger remittance rate of 82.31 per cent, while Mainstream-NIGELEC in Niger paid 68.63 per cent of its $5.96 million invoice.
Notably, Odukpani-CEET in Togo made no payment at all against its $2.18 million invoice.
The report also indicated that SBEE made an additional payment of $3.54 million to settle outstanding invoices from previous quarters, while a domestic bilateral customer, APLE, paid N141 million toward earlier debts.
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In contrast, domestic bilateral customers in Nigeria demonstrated stronger payment discipline, remitting N3.5 billion out of N4.17 billion billed, representing 84.23 per cent performance.
However, Ajaokuta Steel Company, classified as a special customer, failed to make any payment on its N1.26 billion invoice during the period.
NERC noted that the remittance data were based on reconciled market settlements submitted as of April 2, 2026.
The persistent payment shortfalls from neighbouring countries continue to pose a significant revenue challenge for Nigeria’s power sector, undermining efforts to stabilise electricity supply and improve liquidity within the industry.
