Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has announced tougher penalties for electricity consumers found guilty of tampering with or bypassing prepaid meters.
  
According to NERC, any consumer caught engaging in such illegal activities will face severe consequences, including payment of fines and disconnection.The announcement was made in an amended Order on Unauthorised Access, Meter Tampering and By-Pass, released yesterday.
  
The fines range from N100,000 to N300,000, depending on the category to which the customer belongs.  Maximum demand customers are to pay between 450 and 600 per cent of their last recorded energy consumption if caught in the act of energy theft.
 
According to NERC, the Amended Order on Unauthorised Access, Meter Tampering, and By-pass replaces Order No: NERC/REG/41/2017 and has taken effect from January 22, 2025. 
  
The commission disclosed that the amendment aligns with the Electricity Act 2023 and the Customer Protection Regulations 2023, which allow distribution companies to disconnect unauthorised connections without notice and prescribe reconnection conditions.
  
“Customers, who bypass meters or gain unauthorised access, must pay administrative charges (including meter replacement costs) and reconnection,” the order stated.
  
For non-maximum demand single-phase residential customers, the first offence attracts N100,000 and the subsequent offence attracts N150,000. Also, non-maximum demand three-phase will pay a fine of N200,000 for the first offence and N300,000 for subsequent ones.

Similarly, maximum demand customers are to pay 450 per cent of their last recorded consumption and 600 per cent of it for the first and subsequent offences respectively.  Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company (IKEDC) expressed concern over the increasing cases of energy theft.
  
The DisCo warned that individuals caught engaging in the illegal act would face immediate prosecution, stressing that it would no longer rely solely on revenue loss penalties as a consequence for offenders.
  
Ikeja Electric’s Head of Corporate Communication, Kingsley Okotie, expressed concern over rising cases of energy theft, particularly after the implementation of the revised tariff for Band A feeders.
  
The Acting Chief Executive Officer of EKEDC, Mrs Rekhiat Momoh, urged customers to support the company’s efforts in eliminating energy theft and other illegal activities that impede its growth.
  
“Energy theft is a menace that we need to eliminate in our network and the power sector. We lose billions annually to it and it affects our ability to invest in network expansion and infrastructure upgrades required to bring the desired stable power supply,” she said.
 
 Similarly, the spokesperson for Eko DisCo, Babatunde Lasaki, described energy theft, including meter bypass, tampering, illegal connections, and interference with electrical infrastructure as a major challenge in Nigeria’s power sector.
 
 Lasaki noted that the illegal practices had led to significant yearly revenue losses, which, in turn, hindered the company’s ability to invest in network upgrades and deliver quality service to compliant customers.