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Togo, Niger and Benin owe Nigeria a total of $17.8 million, equivalent to more than N25 billion at the current exchange rate, for electricity supplied under bilateral arrangements, according to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
In its Third Quarter 2025 report, NERC said the three countries were invoiced $18.69 million for electricity supplied during the period but paid only $7.125 million, leaving an unpaid balance of $11.56 million.
NERC also disclosed that the international customers had outstanding legacy invoices of $14.7 million from previous quarters. Out of this amount, $7.84 million was paid, leaving a balance of $6.23 million.
Combined with the Q3 2025 shortfall, the total outstanding debt stood at $17.8 million. At an exchange rate of N1,425 to the dollar, the amount translates to about N25.36 billion.
The regulator identified the international offtakers as Compagnie Énergie Électrique du Togo, Société Béninoise d’Énergie Électrique, and Société Nigérienne d’Électricité.
According to the report, the three international bilateral customers purchasing power from grid-connected Nigerian generation companies made a cumulative payment of $7.125m against the $18.69m invoice issued by the Market Operator for Q3 2025, representing a remittance performance of 38.09 per cent.
“The three international bilateral customers being supplied by GenCos in the NESI made a payment of $7.12m against the cumulative invoice of $18.69m issued by the MO for services rendered in 2025/Q3, translating to a remittance performance of 38.09 per cent,” NERC said.
NERC said this meant that more than half of the invoices issued to the international customers remained unpaid at the end of the quarter.
The commission noted that the electricity supplied to the three countries was generated by grid-connected Nigerian generation companies and delivered through cross-border bilateral power arrangements within the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry.
By contrast, NERC said domestic bilateral customers recorded stronger payment performance. During the quarter, they remitted N3.19 billion out of the N3.64 billion invoiced, representing a remittance rate of 87.61 per cent.
“The domestic bilateral customers made a cumulative payment of N3.19bn against the invoice of N3.64bn issued to them by the MO for services rendered in 2025/Q3, translating to 87.61 per cent remittance performance,” it added.
The commission added that some bilateral customers made payments for electricity supplied in previous quarters. According to the report, the Market Operator received $7.84 million from international bilateral customers and N1.3 billion from domestic bilateral customers in settlement of outstanding invoices.
NERC further disclosed that Nigeria’s 11 electricity distribution companies remitted a combined N381.29 billion to Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc and the Market Operator in Q3 2025, out of a total invoice of N400.48 billion. This represented a remittance performance of 95.21 per cent.
The commission said the figures were based on reconciled market settlements submitted to it as of December 18, 2025, as part of its statutory assessment of the electricity market’s commercial performance.
