DisCos | Zikoko!

Electricity is a vital part of our day-to-day lives. And it’s not news that the Nigerian power sector has reached a point where divine intervention might be needed, especially with how the national grid collapses every other day.

Some challenges the power sector faces are insufficient power generation and gas supply, transmission and distribution constraints and poor policy enforcement. However, beyond this, Nigerians also contribute to the power sector crisis by partaking in electricity theft.

What is electricity theft?

Electricity theft is simply stealing or “tapping” electricity through illegal connections, and this has become a significant source of revenue loss for electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos).

According to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), over 25% of the energy transmitted by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) is lost to theft and other technical issues. In 2020, DisCos announced that they had lost over ₦30 billion monthly due to electricity theft and vandalism; in 2018, the Association of Electricity Distributors (ANED) estimated the revenue loss due to electricity theft and vandalism to be about ₦155.89 billion.

The most common methods of electricity theft include:

Illegal hook connections

This method is popularly called “tapping electricity, ” which is done by connecting a service wire to an overhead electricity cable. This connection can also be made underground. This connection increases the load to generating stations and the electricity bill of other consumers.

Metre bypass and tampering

This typically involves manipulating the installed prepaid metre so it doesn’t reflect the actual amount of electricity consumed.

It’s important to know that electricity theft is not without consequences as it increases the risk of fire hazards and overloads the power grid, which causes power outages and destruction of properties. And unfortunately, these adverse effects aren’t limited to just those complicit in electricity theft; innocent people would also be affected.

What does the Law say about Electricity theft?

In 2013, NERC made the Electricity Theft and Other Related Offences Regulations serve as a deterrent. According to Section 1(1) of the regulation, “any person who willfully and unlawfully taps or makes any connection with overhead, underground or underwater lines or cables, or tampers with a metre or uses any other method to interfere with accurate or proper registration, calibration or metering of electric current shall be guilty of an offence under Sections 383 and 400 of the Criminal Code. Such people shall also be guilty under Section 286(2) of the Penal Code Section 1 of this Regulation. They shall be punishable with terms of imprisonment as applicable, provided under Sections 390 of the Criminal Code, Section 287 of the Penal Code or Section 94 of the EPSR Act.”

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The Electric Power Sector Reform Act (2005) also states that anyone who willfully removes or destroys equipment or apparatus of a licensee commits an offence and is liable on conviction to imprisonment for not less than five years and not more than seven years.

Lastly, the Miscellaneous Offences Act states that anyone found unlawfully tampering, meddling or disconnecting electricity equipment used for transforming and converting electricity is liable on conviction to be sentenced for life.

Electricity theft is one of the crimes that certainly needs more attention from the government as it’d go a long way in improving the quality of electricity supply in Nigeria and ending the loss of revenue in the sector.
When God said, “Let there be light”, Nigeria blinked. The little electricity we get is for seeing shege non-stop, and that is not about to end this year.

Despite the fact that some petrol stations are selling fuel between ₦250-300 per litre, and electricity poles are trying to kill us; Nigeria is about to show us that our situation can and will get worse.

Many people have complained about the country’s electricity state for many weeks. 24-hour electricity isn’t regular for many of us, but in the last couple of weeks, there’s been little to no power supply. Those lucky enough to get blessed by the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) have electricity for a few minutes, at best hours, once or twice a week.

What are the Electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) saying?

Although there has been no official statement from the DisCos, Ikeja Electric and Eko Distribution company gave the following reasons on their Twitter pages when asked for information on what was going on:
- Low power generation
- Some areas have ongoing maintenance work by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).
Unfortunately, many Nigerians are in the dark about what’s happening, which shouldn’t be, and there’s a law to back this up.

What is this legislation?

According to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) are mandated by law to notify their customers in writing before Nigeria’s electricity service disconnection. In simple terms, if there isn’t going to be light for a couple of days, it is within our rights to be informed beforehand in writing.

It’s not shocking that this regulation isn’t being followed, as many of us had no idea it even existed in the first place. However, this isn’t the only right we are entitled to as electricity consumers.

We have the right to contest an electricity bill

It’s not uncommon to hear complaints of being overcharged for electricity that was barely even available in the first place. And although we’d usually pay irrespective of the fact that it seems unfair, it is within our rights to contest the bill brought. If more Nigerians start paying attention to this, it won’t be long before we start seeing changes in the power sector in this regard.

It isn’t our responsibility to repair, replace or buy transformers or electric poles

This seems like common knowledge, but citizens often take this burden on themselves as the government either takes years to meet these demands or shies away from the responsibility altogether.

With elections less than a month away, the ruling party is giving Nigerians reasons not to vote them in again. Can they pull a miracle before February 25th, or should we accept this difficult lifestyle as the new norm?

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A new year may be upon us, but Nigeria’s trials and tribulations remain the same as a country. The new naira bank notes are still not in full circulation yet, and queues at filling stations are gradually becoming the new norm. And now, to top it all up, notwithstanding the current state of our crippling economy, electricity distribution companies (DisCos) decided to increase the price of tariffs by over 17% quietly.

What exactly went down?

A few days ago, some electricity consumers around the country drew attention to the fact that there has been a price of electricity tariffs. For instance, the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) changed its tariff price from ₦57.55 to ₦68.2, so rather than getting 34 units for ₦2000, you’d be getting 29. When complaints were filed to the AEDC, they responded by simply saying the change was in compliance with an order from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

Why did NERC increase the tariff price?

According to the NERC’s Multi-Year Tariff Order (MYTO), tariff prices and rates are subject to change and review relative to economic factors like inflation, exchange rates and generation capacity. However, the issue here is that perhaps to avoid public outrage, no announcement was made to tell people about these changes. It’s almost like Nigerians are cursed to see an endless cycle of shege from every sector of the country.

What has the government said so far?

On January 5, 2023, the minister of state for power, Goddy Jedy-Agba, was in a meeting with the National Union of Electricity Employees (NNEE). When asked about the recent hike in tariff, he surprisingly denied knowledge of it. Instead, he asked Nigerians to speak with the NERC chairman.

So, once again, it looks like we’re on our own.

What is electricity theft?

Illegal hook connections

Metre bypass and tampering

What does the Law say about Electricity theft?

What are the Electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) saying?

What is this legislation?

We have the right to contest an electricity bill

It isn’t our responsibility to repair, replace or buy transformers or electric poles

What exactly went down?

Why did NERC increase the tariff price?

What has the government said so far?