By Samuel Adeola
Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has come down hard on electricity Distribution Companies, accusing them of frustrating Nigeria’s push for stable power.
Speaking at a Senate Committee on Power retreat, Adelabu said the DisCos have failed woefully in meeting performance expectations, making nonsense of the government’s strides in power generation.
“We need to get tough with the DisCos. All our efforts in generation mean nothing if power does not reach the people,” he said.
The minister revealed that most DisCos have ignored agreements made during the 2003 power sector reform. Rather than bringing in technical partners, many used bank loans to buy assets and failed to invest in infrastructure upgrades.
Despite a 70 percent increase in revenue from one trillion naira in 2023 to one point seven trillion naira in 2024, Adelabu said the distribution segment remains the sector’s weakest link.
He noted poor remittance rates, with northern DisCos paying just 30 percent of their bills in the fourth quarter, while those in the south performed slightly better at 67 percent, driven mainly by Lagos.
Adelabu described the four trillion naira subsidy burden as unsustainable and vowed to restructure underperforming DisCos while enforcing strict performance standards.
He also pointed to the country’s huge metering gap, which he said continues to fuel revenue loss and public distrust.
He revealed that the government is rolling out a 700 billion naira Presidential Metering Initiative alongside a World Bank-backed plan to install 4.3 million meters by 2025.
Without immediate investment in distribution, Adelabu warned that gains like the March 2025 record of 6,003 megawatts and the installation of 61 new transformers in 2024 will not impact Nigerian homes.
He called on lawmakers to enact tougher laws against vandalism and support policies that will attract private investment and strengthen the national grid.
