NERC urges Nigerians with large solar systems to claim electricity bill credits

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has urged households and businesses with qualifying solar power systems to take advantage of its Net Billing Regulations 2026, which allow eligible consumers to receive credits on their electricity bills for surplus power supplied to the national grid.

The commission made the call in a post on its official X account, encouraging consumers to review the regulations and confirm whether their solar installations meet the requirements for participation.

Under the scheme, eligible consumers can use electricity generated by their solar systems to power their homes or businesses and export excess energy to their electricity distribution companies (DisCos) in exchange for credits on their bills.

However, the scheme is not open to every solar user. Under NERC’s guidelines, participating renewable energy systems must have a minimum capacity of 50 kilowatt-peak (kWp) and a maximum capacity of 1.5 megawatt-peak (MWp).

Applicants must also be connected to a DisCo network, comply with applicable technical and safety standards, obtain approval from their DisCo, sign a Net Billing Agreement and complete registration with NERC.

The minimum capacity requirement means that many Nigerians with smaller residential solar installations may not qualify under the current framework.

The initiative could be particularly beneficial to businesses and industries with larger solar systems that regularly generate more electricity than they consume, allowing them to receive bill credits for excess power supplied to the grid.

NERC urged interested consumers to study the regulations and confirm that they meet all the conditions before applying to participate in the scheme.