Six decades after Nigeria gained independence, the energy sector remains stagnant. Several factors, including lack of political will and corrupt industry leaders, influence the sector’s redundancy and the continuous struggle to meet energy demands. Projections have shown that energy poverty might worsen due to an increase in population by 2050. According to Statista, Nigeria’s population will double to 400 million between 2025 and 2050, making it the third most populous country after China and India. As the population continues to grow, the energy demand will surge.
Despite these setbacks, Nigeria still has vast potential for natural resources that remain untapped for energy generation. Hydropower is a viable and sustainable energy source with significant potential for the country’s energy landscape. Hydropower is simply electricity generated from water sources such as a dam. The electric power is generated when the force of the water spins turbines to power generators. Nigeria generates about 71 per cent of renewable energy from hydropower. Nigeria has an abundant hydropower reserve and generates its cheapest electricity from hydropower at N3.65/kg, as stated in NERC’s latest Market Competition Report. However, it has not fully harnessed this opportunity to achieve its energy transition to cleaner and sustainable energy sources.
Nigeria’s energy generation is mostly from fossil fuels that emit greenhouse gases, posing a threat to the environment. Hydropower potential is estimated to have the capacity to produce about 14,000 megawatts (MW) of electricity yearly. Still, it only accounts for approximately 2,000MW of total installed on-grid energy generation capacity. Nigeria has great potential for hydropower generation, with over 200 sites in different locations (Olutola B. Fakehinde et al.). Furthermore, despite the cost of constructing and maintaining dams, hydropower is a sustainable source of electricity because it is renewable and offers energy and price stability.
The government needs to put in more work in maintaining dams with appropriate maintenance to increase grid capacity. Political leaders must also work more to implement and execute developed policies, including intentional budgetary allocations for hydropower projects.