The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has backed the Lagos State Electricity Regulatory Commission (LASERC) over its push to modernise electricity billing systems through a comprehensive digital metering reform.
The federal competition regulator describes the initiative as a critical step toward transparency, accountability, and consumer protection in Nigeria’s evolving power sector.
The endorsement follows the release of the 2025 Lagos Electricity Market Report, which sets out an ambitious transition from estimated billing to a fully data-driven electricity infrastructure anchored on Universal Smart Meters (USM). The rollout is scheduled to begin in 2026 and will be implemented on a feeder-by-feeder basis across Lagos State.
“Estimated billing remains one of the leading sources of consumer complaints within Nigeria’s power sector. Measures that accelerate metering and improve billing transparency are important to consumer protection and overall market accountability,” Bello says.
Lagos to end estimated electricity billing with smart meters
Under the new framework, LASERC plans to phase out estimated billing by deploying smart meters systematically across distribution feeders, enabling real-time monitoring of electricity consumption, load balancing, and grid performance.
The reform is designed to replace long-standing billing practices widely criticised by consumers as opaque and inconsistent, with automated metering systems that provide verified and auditable consumption data.
LASERC says the initiative represents a major shift toward consumer-focused regulation as Nigeria’s electricity sector continues its transition under the Electricity Act 2023, which decentralised electricity market governance and empowered states to establish independent regulatory frameworks.
FCCPC endorses data-driven electricity market reforms
The FCCPC says LASERC’s roadmap, outlined in the 2025 Lagos Electricity Market Report, introduces compulsory metering enforcement from 2026, feeder-by-feeder smart meter deployment, stronger complaint resolution mechanisms, and stricter penalties for non-compliant operators.
Tunji Bello, Executive Vice Chairman/CEO of FCCPC, says estimated billing remains a major source of consumer dissatisfaction in Nigeria’s electricity sector and underscores the importance of accelerating metering reforms.
“Estimated billing remains one of the leading sources of consumer complaints within Nigeria’s power sector. Measures that accelerate metering and improve billing transparency are important to consumer protection and overall market accountability,” Bello says.
He adds that accurate metering strengthens market fairness by improving billing precision, reducing disputes, and enhancing consumer trust in electricity service delivery.
Lagos reforms seen as model for other states in Nigeria
The FCCPC has urged other state-level electricity regulators to adopt similar reforms as more subnational governments establish independent electricity markets under Nigeria’s decentralised regulatory framework.
“Lagos has taken an important step towards improving consumer protection and accountability within the electricity sector. Other states implementing electricity market reforms should also prioritise transparent metering frameworks, effective complaint resolution systems, and clear service standards that strengthen consumer confidence and support better service delivery across the sector,” Bello says.
The reform momentum is rooted in the Electricity Act 2023, which effectively decentralised Nigeria’s power sector by allowing states to regulate electricity generation, transmission, and distribution within their jurisdictions.
The law has enabled states like Lagos to design independent market systems aimed at addressing structural inefficiencies that have long affected national electricity delivery.
Nigeria continues to face a significant metering deficit, with the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) previously reporting that over seven million electricity consumers remain unmetered and dependent on estimated billing.
Beyond billing reforms, LASERC’s strategy includes tighter oversight of electricity distribution companies, improved service delivery benchmarks, and stricter enforcement of metering compliance obligations.
The regulator says these measures are aimed at addressing persistent inefficiencies in power distribution, including consumption disputes, inconsistent service delivery, and weak complaint resolution systems.
FCCPC notes that findings from the Lagos Electricity Market Report also highlight broader challenges, including infrastructure gaps, reliability issues, and inefficiencies in customer service processes across the state’s electricity network.
The commission stresses that resolving these challenges will require sustained investment in both physical infrastructure and digital systems capable of supporting a more efficient, transparent, and accountable electricity market.
Lagos to bypass legacy metering bottlenecks
The Lagos reform drive also reflects efforts to bypass long-standing bottlenecks that have slowed national metering programmes, including the National Mass Metering Programme (NMMP), which has struggled to close Nigeria’s widespread metering gap.
By adopting a feeder-by-feeder smart meter deployment model, Lagos is positioning itself as a testbed for subnational electricity market reform under Nigeria’s new decentralised power sector structure.
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