- Temitope Omowumi, the council co-ordinator for the Nigeria Wind Energy Council (NWEC), in his paper presentation has call for the advancement of wind energy in Nigeria.
- He noted that Nigeria should be talking about wind because ten per cent of the windiest areas in Nigeria have wind speeds averaging around 6.79 meters per second, especially when you go above 75 meters in height.
Temitope Omowumi, the council coordinator for the Nigeria Wind Energy Council, has called for the advancement of wind energy in Nigeria in his paper presentation. His presentation focused on the Overview of Wind Energy: Introduction to Wind Energy, Wind Energy Resources, Measurement and Assessment, on a two-day workshop organised by Nextier and the Africa Climate Foundation. The workshop focuses on the theme Pre-Empting Resilience for Accelerated Renewable Energy Scaling.
Omowumi noted that as part of the Nigeria Wind Energy Council’s (NWEC) commitment to advancing wind energy, especially large-scale wind applications in the country, the reason for participating in this workshop was to educate people about wind energy.
He said the objective of the presentation is to introduce wind energy fundamentals, understand wind energy resource potential and explore methods for measuring and assessing wind resources.
He stated NWEC was formed as a result of identifying the gap for independent non-political and non-profit agency to advance the cause of wind, coupled with the fact that the topic of wind energy has not been considered as top compared with solar.
He noted, NWEC is affiliated with the Global Wind Energy Council and the vision of NWEC is to actively amplify the bridging of energy access gaps in Nigeria to advance citizen quality of life.
“NWEC have the mission to increase the penetration of wind energy as a renewable energy system and sustain a forum for members to address issues of common interests geared towards advancing wind energy development in Nigeria,” he said.
He stated that the thematic areas of activities of the council are communication and advocacy, technological data and Market intelligence for wind, capacity building and certification, and identifying relevant partnerships and collaborations to push the topic of wind.
He noted that Nigeria should be talking about wind because ten percent of the windiest areas in Nigeria have wind speeds averaging around 6.79 meters per second, especially when you go above 75 meters in height; if that is taken into consideration, Nigeria’s annual wind energy production is significant, and Nigeria should tap into its potential.
“in Nigeria, findings show that there is wind potential with a projected generation capacity of 7GW by 2050. Wind energy is also a competitively-priced renewable resource. It also complements solar and other technologies, minimises disruption of land use, and offers opportunities for community benefit sharing,” he stated.
He added that the potential Nigeria has in wind is the Katsina wind farm with 10.175 MW located at the Lamba Rimi in Rimi local government of Katsina state. It holds the distinction of being Nigeria’s only operational wind energy initiative.
He stated that Kenya has an installed capacity of wind of 435MW, the West African region has 296MW, and Nigeria has 10MW, and there is significant untapped potential in Nigeria of 1000GW and West Africa of 9144GW.
“There are only two countries that are exploring wind energy; even with the coastal line we have in West Africa, there are no offshore applications, yet we hope to get there.
They are Parc Eolien Taiba N’diaye in Senegal with a capacity of 158.7MW, with an annual energy production of 450 GWh and can abate annum 300,000 tonnes of CO2 and katsina wind farm with 10.175 MW with an annual energy production of 0.987GWh and abate annum tonnes of 493.45 CO2. If operational, the Katsina wind farm will be abating 500 tons of CO2; aside from energy access, it contributes to net – zero in Nigeria,” he said.
He added, the largest wind farm in Africa is the Lake Turkana wind farm in Kenya, which produces what the entire wind farm in West Africa can produce. It is a flagship reference project that everyone in Africa is proud of. The Lake Turkana wind farm capacity is 310.25MW, with annual energy production of 1550GWh. The wind farm can abate an annum of 736,615 tonnes of CO2.
He noted also that the initial application for wind energy was windmills around 1200 BC, noting that in the photo of the Netherlands, you will see many windmills in rural areas. People have been using wind for over 3000 years to grind grain and pump water. Wind was first used for electricity generation in the late 19th century.
He stated that a wind turbine is a device that converts kinetic energy from the wind into electricity, stating that a group of wind turbines is called a wind farm. On a wind farm, turbines provide power to the electrical grid, and they can be found on land (onshore) or at sea (offshore). He noted that wind turbines are manufactured in a wide range of sizes, but the most common design is one with three blades mounted on a horizontal axis.
He noted that a turbine consists of three components: rotor, nacelle, and tower. The rotor consists of blades and a hub. Blades capture kinetic energy from the wind. They are typically made of lightweight and durable materials like fibreglass or carbon fibre and are designed for aerodynamic efficiency to maximise energy capture. The hub connects the blades to the nacelle and acts as the pivot point for blade rotation.
He stated that Nacelle house unit that sits atop the tower contains key mechanical and electrical components. The nacelle has a gearbox, generator and brake. Gearbox, which steps up the slow rotation speed of the blades to a higher speed suitable for the generator. The generator converts mechanical energy from the rotor into electrical energy, and the brake system stops the rotor in emergencies or when wind speed exceeds safety thresholds. The tower supports the rotor and nacelle at a height where wind speeds are higher and more consistent.