By Henry Uche, Lagos
Investors in the energy sector stand a better chance to make sound business decisions as the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) launches the One-Stop Investment Platform for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (OSIP RE/EE) for the purpose of giving Investors seamless access to every information about the sector and business decisions.
At the media retreat held on Tuesday, the NIPC Director of Investment Promotion, Mr Adeshina Emmanuel, said in a presentation that the information on the platform would be updated regularly to reflect the current state of listed projects and opportunities for investments in the Nigerian electricity sector.
According to him, OSIP RE/EE was developed within the framework of the Nigerian Energy Support Programme (NESP II), a technical assistance programme, co-funded by the EU and the German Government and implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) in collaboration with Federal Government of Nigeria.
He affirmed that ‘the platform is a digital platform that will provide easy access to relevant information for investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency in Nigeria. Built with the cooperation of public, private and financial sector partners, the platform will provide technical, regulatory, and economic information aimed at de-risking projects and scaling up investments in the sector and would be manned by NIPC in collaboration with the Rural Electrification Agency and the Federal Ministry of Power.
‘The OSIP includes an overview section about the Nigerian renewable energy and energy efficiency sector and investment opportunities. Furthermore, the platform includes a networking tool for investors to interact with public and private stakeholders and an energy efficiency calculator for commercial and residential buildings and industries.’
In his presentation, a senior investment Officer from NIPC, Abdulrahaman Adamu, urged state governors, investors and other critical stakeholders in the business world to take full advantage of the “Book of States” recently launched by NIPC adding that the document is loaded with salient information for decision making, planning and policy design.
On his part, the Commission’s Head, Corporate Services, Sabo Isiaku, stressed the need for both national and foreign business operators to explore the much-embedded advantages in the Single Window Investment Portal (SWIP) which was an initiative of NIPC e-business facilitation Portal and NIPC’s e-government Initiative put in place to facilitate businesses and investment in the country. According to both investment Officers, access to the Book of States and the SWIP can be made in the Commission’s website.