Free Prepaid Meter: How to Get One Under NERC's ₦30bn Order

Your DisCo will fit a free prepaid meter at your house if you're an unmetered Band A or Band B customer, and you pay nothing for the meter or the fitting. Installs should run from December to the end of May 2027.

The money comes from NERC order NERC/2026/121, in force since 2 November. Its ₦30bn is Tranche C, the third round of the Meter Acquisition Fund. Two earlier rounds came first, so the fund now stands at ₦79bn.

How long it takes to get a prepaid meter: the 10, 15 and 7-day clock

Three deadlines run before anyone knocks. Each DisCo first gets 10 days to choose meter makers and Meter Asset Providers (MAPs, the private firms that supply meters) through open procurement. Then comes a 15-day window to send NERC a full list of its meters, down to brand and serial number. Once NERC approves, suppliers deliver within seven days.

Put that on a calendar. Procurement should close around 12 November and the meter lists should reach NERC by late November, but NERC's own review has no fixed length, so nobody can promise you a date. Even with every step running back to back, the first meters only reach warehouses in early or mid December. Fitting comes after that.

So don't expect a meter before December.

Yours could come any time before the end of May 2027, and you'll be in a long queue. In August 2026, a little over a third of everyone on the grid still had no meter. That's about 4.7 million active customers waiting for the same visit.

Check your electricity band and whether you're really unmetered

Start with your last bill. A monthly figure that's a guess rather than a meter reading is estimated billing, and estimated billing means you're unmetered, which is exactly who this money is for. This round skips anyone already loading tokens on a working prepaid meter.

Next, find your band. You can check which electricity band your feeder is on in under a minute, or ring your DisCo's customer care with your account number in front of you. The order covers every remaining unmetered Band A customer and speeds up metering on Band B.

Band C, D and E customers sit outside Tranche C, so for now the paid MAP scheme is their route to a meter.

Do you have to apply for a free prepaid meter?

It depends on your DisCo. As at 11 November 2026, the four big ones each handle it differently.

IBEDC: you don't apply at all. There's no form, registration or office visit. It fits meters area by area on its own schedule.

Ikeja Electric: you register through KYC, which puts your name, ID and address on record. Start online from the Free Metering Program and eligibility pages on ikejaelectric.com.

Eko DisCo: check your eligibility first, then use the "Order A Meter" page on ekedp.com.

AEDC: call customer care and ask to be logged for a free meter. Skip its online applications, because those are for paid MAP meters.

Whatever your DisCo, you can get your request on record now instead of waiting for a Tranche C notice. It takes about five minutes:

1. Find your account number on your latest bill.
2. Open your DisCo's metering page, or call its customer care line.
3. Ask to be logged for a free meter under the Meter Acquisition Fund.
4. Write down the ticket or reference number.

Snap a photo of your bill and your ID while you're at it, so you can send everything in one go when a Tranche C window opens.

The installers are at your gate: ID, the NOT FOR SALE label, no payment

Ask for valid ID first. Once they show it, let them in. Turning away installers with valid ID gives your DisCo the right under NERC's rules to cut your supply, and nobody wants to explain that to the family when the light goes.

Look at the meter itself before anyone drills a hole. The free prepaid meter you're owed has your DisCo's name, the MAF tranche and "NOT FOR SALE" printed clearly on the casing. Moving the connection point, say from the house to the fence, is on the DisCo too.

Once it's in, leave it alone. Bypassing a meter is energy theft.

Where people get stuck

Four snags come up again and again.

You're a new connection

Earlier rounds kept new connections out of free meters and sent them to the MAP scheme instead. Expect the same rule this time, and check with your DisCo before you plan around a free one.

You owe the DisCo money

IBEDC won't refuse you a meter over unpaid bills. It deals with the debt under its own settlement policy, which can mean a trip to the nearest office to clear it, either before or after the fitting. On any other DisCo, ring customer care before installation day.

You already paid for a MAP meter

No second meter comes free in that case. Read how the MAP meter refund works to see what you can claim back.

Nobody calls back: DisCo complaint first, then the NERC Forum Office

Write your complaint down and send it to your DisCo's Customer Care Unit. Keep the acknowledgement. The DisCo should sort it within 15 working days. When the answer doesn't satisfy you, take it and that acknowledgement to the NERC Forum Office in your area, and NERC's head office can take the details from there if the Forum's decision still leaves you stuck.

Your first token on the new meter

Before the installers leave, ask them to confirm the meter number is linked to your account. Some meters ask for a key change token (KCT), so ask the installers to load it before they go; IBEDC customers can also get one from the Customer KCT Generator on ibedc.com.

Then buy a small token and key in the 20-digit code. Call your DisCo the same day if the meter rejects it.

You can buy your first electricity token online on AidaPay. Ikeja Electric tokens start at ₦500 there, with ₦1 back. Prices as at 11 November 2026.

Today's job is small: find your account number, call your DisCo and write down the reference number.

Frequently asked questions

Published 11 November 2026. Prices and codes change - if you spot one that has moved, tell us and we will fix it.