The Federal Government has imposed a nationwide ban on electricity distribution companies (DisCos) and meter installers from collecting any form of payment from consumers for the installation of electricity meters, warning that violators will be prosecuted.
The directive was issued by the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, during an inspection of a new consignment of imported smart meters at APM Terminals, Apapa, Lagos, on Thursday, January 22.
The meters were procured under the World Bank–funded Distribution Sector Recovery Programme (DISREP), an initiative designed to close Nigeria’s longstanding metering gap and improve transparency and fairness in electricity billing.
Adelabu made it clear that all meters supplied under the programme must be installed free of charge, regardless of a customer’s category or tariff band.
“It is an offence for any DisCo official or installer to request a dime from consumers before installation. These meters must be distributed and installed completely free of charge,” the minister stated.
He revealed that about 500,000 new smart meters have just arrived in the country, adding to previous shipments under the DISREP initiative.
According to Adelabu, the programme aims to procure 3.4 million meters in two phases. From the first phase of 1.43 million meters, nearly one million units have already been delivered to Nigeria, with approximately 150,000 installed nationwide so far.
The federal government says the policy is part of broader efforts to protect electricity consumers, curb estimated billing, and strengthen confidence in the power sector, while warning DisCos and installers that any breach of the directive will attract legal consequences.
