- FG and ten states are working to produce 2,000MW using solar energy.
- Kainji and Jebba barely produce 130MW of energy.
According to Engr. Aliyu Abubakar, Minister of Power, the Federal Government and ten states are actively working to produce 2,000MW of off-grid electricity using solar energy sources. While speaking at The Electricity Hub’s Power Dialogue in Abuja yesterday, the minister noted that the FG has policies around renewable energy. However, they will be deployed mainly off-grid as the grid is not yet stable enough for clean energy integration. “We want to raise our base-load to a level where we can later integrate these other energy sources,” He added. Engr. Abubakar also added that the federal government is currently discussing with 14 solar developers to execute projects that will generate about 1,000MW of clean off-grid energy. In addition, the Federal government is also working with ten states to generate an additional 1,000MW. Each state is set to produce 100MW of solar power.
Engr. Abubakar noted that Nigeria’s biggest hydropower plants, Kainji and Jebba, produce barely 130MW of energy despite having a combined installed capacity of around 1,300MW. He added the government is also looking at improving energy security with newer technologies, such as hydrogen. He noted the recent work the German government office in Nigeria is doing and notes that the federal government is closely looking into hydrogen as a potential energy source.