New Telegraph

Nigeria’s renewable power investment deficit hits $4bn annually

 

 

 

The Nigeria’s renewable power investment deficit has hit $4 billion annually. A document of the power ministry sighted by New Telegraph at the weekend showed that the sector required the $4 billion annually to universally access clean and renewable energy for a sustained power supply to consumers in the country.

 

The document presented by Minister of State foe Power, Goddy Jedy Agba, at a virtual global power sector players conference presided over by the United Nations Secretary General, Antonio Guternes, outlined the achievements and challenges President Muhammadu Buhari administration has recorded in the power sector.

 

He said the government was desirous of ensuring that there is adequate supply of electricity to consumers. He said: “Our ambition is demonstrated by the recent removal of the fuel subsidy in Nigeria which now make the offgrid sector more competitive, as well as the 5 million solar connections Programe which was included in the Covid 19 recovery strategy, Economic Sustainability Plan, ESP.”

 

While urging global partners to support ESP, introduced by the Federal Government, the minister stressed that Nigeria was taking steps to merge its energy access and energy transition conversations as the largest unelectrified population globally resides within the borders.

 

He called for access to the unelectrified 85 million people using renewable sources to maintain Nigeria and Africa’s low contribution to carbon emission.

 

Agba declared that financing had been a major constrain, adding that the present administration has identified areas of conflicts including accountability, transparency and technical capacity and has gone a long way to address these challenges except for finances to boost the sector. He stated that clean and renewable energy was the way to go for a sustained power sector  reforms in the country to hand over a prestigious legacy in the power sector for successive governments.

 

Earlier, the UN Secretary General, Antonio Gluternes, noted that African countries and the global trend for power sector development was clean and renewable energy to unbundle the usual grid supply, which has been insurficient over the years especially in African countries considering the huge amounts of fund required to fund sustained supply of power.

 

According to him, the United Nations is prepared to give necessary support to Nigeria considering the position paper presented by the minister of state power Goddy Jeddy Agba at the conference.

 

Responding further to Agba’s presentation, Antonio disclosed that the United Nation was currently supporting the Nigerian power sector to stabilise supply, saying the UN would increase their support to improve the adequate supply of electricity in Nigeria.

 

Also speaking at the conference was the President of African Development Bank, AFDB, Dr Akunwumi Adesina, who stated that the African Development Bank would continue to support the power sector public private initiatives to ensure that there is stability in the power sector across African countries.

 

He said the bank had continued to formulate and implement power sector friendly policies on order to boost manufacturing, industrialisation and the informal sector for sustainable growth and development.

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