Nigeria remains a key player in West Africa’s electricity landscape, supplying power to neighbouring countries despite ongoing domestic grid challenges.
In the first half of 2025, Benin, Togo, and Niger received electricity from Nigeria but currently owe $19.97 million, underscoring the financial and operational pressures facing the regional power system.
Payment Delays from Regional Utilities
According to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), only $14.81 million of the total $34.78 million invoiced for the first two quarters of 2025 has been settled.
Figures reported by The Guardian indicate that Paras-SBEE (Benin) made no payments on invoices of $2.42 million and $2.77 million, while Paras-CEET (Togo) paid $0.63 million of a $1.92 million Q1 invoice and nothing on a $2.02 million Q2 invoice.
NERC has highlighted this recurring pattern of delayed payments and has called on the Nigerian government for support, emphasising the need for regulatory follow-up.
Domestic Energy Challenges
Meanwhile, Nigeria continues to grapple with one of Africa’s most urgent energy challenges: meeting the electricity needs of its rapidly growing population.
Although the country has an installed generation capacity of around 13 gigawatts, the national grid delivers only about 4 gigawatts to more than 200 million citizens, frequently experiencing malfunctions and service disruptions.
NERC data show multiple partial and total grid collapses in 2024, including two nationwide blackouts, highlighting the operational and financial challenges confronting the country’s power sector.
At the same time, domestic electricity consumers have also contributed to the sector’s financial strain. From January to June 2025, outstanding payments reached approximately $890 million, while the eleven Distribution Companies (DisCos) collected $2.68 billion of $3.57 billion billed.
Government Initiatives and Reforms
Recent tariff adjustments for urban consumers have strengthened the financial sustainability of the sector, with revenues rising 70 percent in 2024 and projected to increase by 41 percent in 2025, reaching approximately $1.6 billion.
“These changes will enable power firms to reinvest in infrastructure, expand access, and improve reliability,” Minister Adelabu said in October.
These initiatives are part of the Power Sector Reform and Energy Transition Agenda, underscoring Nigeria’s role as both a domestic energy reform leader and a key regional power supplier in Africa.
Regional Implications
Outstanding debts from neighbouring utilities illustrate the financial challenges inherent in cross-border electricity supply.
As Benin, Togo, and Niger continue to rely on Nigerian power, timely payments and enhanced regional cooperation through the West African Power Pool (WAPP) framework are crucial to sustaining the sector and advancing reliable electricity access and regional energy integration across West Africa.
