Nigeria's three West African electricity customers left $9.55m unpaid on a $20.44m invoice for power delivered in the fourth quarter of 2025, according to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission's quarterly market report. The collective remittance rate of 53.28% means that for every $100 billed to utilities in Benin, Togo, and Niger, only $53.28 entered the Nigerian market settlement system, with the remaining $46.72 representing accumulated arrears that generation companies have not yet recovered.
Billing and Settlement Data
The NERC Market Operator issued invoices totaling $20.44m to the three countries' utilities for electricity generated by Nigerian generation companies and exported through the West African Power Pool interconnected grid. The four-quarter billing period covering October through December 2025 saw combined payments of $10.89m arrive from the three bilateral counterparties, producing the 53.28% remittance performance that has now been formally recorded in the commission's market settlement reconciliation dated April 2, 2026.
The $9.55m shortfall carries forward into subsequent settlement periods and becomes part of the outstanding receivable ledger that Nigerian generators must manage while continuing to supply power to neighboring countries. This dynamic creates a cash flow pressure on generation companies that rely on cross-border revenue streams to offset costs and maintain plant operations.
Six Active Contracts, Six Different Outcomes
Six bilateral power supply contracts sit within the international settlement framework, and their individual payment records reveal stark disparities in how each counterpart fulfilled its obligations. Paras Energy supplied Société Béninoise d'Energie Electrique in Benin, collecting $1.67m of a $2.45m invoice for a 68.16% remittance rate. The same company also supplied Compagnie Energie Electrique du Togo under a second contract, receiving $1.46m against a $2.18m bill for a 64.97% fulfillment rate.
Transcorp Ughelli Power's contract with SBEE in Benin recorded the weakest performance of the active arrangements. Only $0.46m arrived against an invoice of $3.74m, translating to a 12.30% remittance rate that fell far below the market average. In contrast, Transcorp Afam 3's separate contract with SBEE achieved the highest payment rate among all six arrangements, with $3.21m remitted on a $3.90m invoice for an 82.31% fulfillment rate.
The Odukpani-CEET contract in Togo recorded zero payment during the period. No remittance was submitted against the $2.18m invoice issued for power delivered from the Odukpani generation facility. Mainstream Renewable Energy's contract with Société Nigerienne d'Electricite saw partial payment of $4.09m against a $5.96m invoice, representing a 68.63% remittance rate.
Arrears payments from prior quarters also appeared in the settlement data. Société Béninoise d'Energie Electrique submitted $3.54m toward outstanding invoices from earlier periods, with $1.86m allocated to the Ughelli supply route and $1.67m to the Afam 3 supply route, indicating that accumulated debt from Benin utilities continues to be addressed through installment arrangements.
Domestic Customers Demonstrate Stronger Payment Discipline
Domestic bilateral customers in the Nigerian electricity market demonstrated markedly higher payment compliance during the same quarter. Nigerian utilities remitted a cumulative N3.5bn against an invoice of N4.17bn issued by the market operator, yielding an 84.23% remittance rate that outpaced the international counterparties by nearly 31 percentage points. This performance gap indicates that internal customers, operating within the same settlement framework and regulatory oversight, paid approximately 84 kobo for every naira billed.
Within the domestic segment, Ajaokuta Steel Company occupied a distinct category as a special customer. The market operator invoiced Ajaokuta N1.26bn for the quarter, yet no payment was recorded against that bill. This non-remittance by a single domestic customer contrasts sharply with the broader domestic performance, illustrating that payment discipline varies even within the regulated domestic market.
The $9.55m default by West African neighbors represents a recurring challenge in Nigeria's cross-border electricity trade. Generation companies that export power under bilateral arrangements receive lower payment assurance than those supplying domestic customers, even as the same generators must maintain capacity and availability for both markets. The NERC quarterly report captures this settlement gap in granular contract-level detail, documenting how regional power integration proceeds alongside persistent revenue collection shortfalls that constrain the financial stability of Nigerian generators.