Energy Theft as a Menace in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry

Electricity theft contributes significantly to business and liquidity losses. Electricity, like
any other corporeal commodity, is susceptible to theft. Under Section 383 (1) of the
Criminal Code, "a person who fraudulently takes anything capable of being stolen, or
fraudulently converts anything capable of being stolen to his own or the use of any other
person, is said to steal that thing". Also, Section 286(2) of the Penal Code also provides
thus:” Whoever dishonestly abstracts, diverts, consumes or uses any electricity or
electrical current is said to commit theft. “

The most prevalent forms of electricity theft are tapping straight into the distribution
feeder, unauthorized access (illegal connections), and tampering with the electricity
meter. Electricity meters are tampered with in order to manipulate the meter's
measurement.
Customers think that accessing electricity without paying for it cannot be compared to
other types of crime, like robbery, so they frequently support this practice. However,
strong arguments have been made that Nigeria's power industry, particularly the
distribution sector in the value chain, cannot be maintained if the widespread theft of
electricity is not addressed.
There are numerous laws, orders, and rules that make electricity theft a crime and carry
harsh penalties, which many consumers are unaware of. Section 10 Miscellaneous
Offences Act provides that;
Any person who unlawfully disconnects, removes, damages, tampers, meddles with or in
any way whatsoever interferes with any electric fittings, meters or other appliances used
for generating, transforming, converting, conveyancing, supplying or selling electricity shall
be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 21
years. “

Furthermore, Section 94 (3) of the Electric Power Sector Reform Act (EPSRA) provides
that;
‘Notwithstanding anything contained in any other law, any person who wilfully destroys,
injures or removes equipment or apparatus of a licensee commits an offence and is liable
on conviction to imprisonment for a period of not less than five (5) years and not more
than seven (7) years.
Despite the fact that all of these laws have been put in place to combat this menace,
there has still been no documented instance of an offender being charged or convicted
for such a crime. Most Discos typically demand payment of reconnection fees,
administrative fees, and back billing (for lost income) as a result of unauthorized access,
and in extreme cases increased fees for repeat offenders. Despite the fact that the
Discos' process is aimed at recovering the financial losses caused by this theft, they have
been unable to effectively combat this threat.