President Muhammadu Buhari has said the rapid integration of solar power into the country’s energy mix will lead to an increase in electricity access to underserved and unserved communities.
The president stated this when he received a delegation of SUN Africa LLC, USA, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
He said the Federal Government had embarked on several reforms aimed at revitalising the energy sector to improve energy access to communities across the country.
He commended the interest of the US developer to invest in Nigeria’s power sector, pledging that the Federal Government would remain committed to collaborating with the private sector in improving energy access, creating jobs and industrial development.
The president highlighted some of the reforms embarked upon by this administration to address Nigeria’s energy needs to include the signing of the Nigeria Climate Change Bill in November 2021, implementation of the Power Sector Recovery Programme with the World Bank and the Nigeria Electrification Programme.
He said the Presidential Power Initiative with Siemens was aimed at achieving an alignment across the electricity value chain.
“Initiatives like these will go a long way in developing local capacity through technology transfer and relieving transmission constraints through the generation and distribution of electricity in the local distribution companies franchise area, making off-take easier. The ministers of finance and Pper as well as other agencies of government will remain available at all times, to ensure the achievement of this significant project as part of our efforts towards achieving Net Zero Emission by 2050,” he said.
Founder, Sun Africa LLC, USA, Mr. Goran Rajsic, said the renewable and infrastructure company, hoped to deliver solar power in multiple locations across Nigeria, just as it had done in Angola, with financing through the US EXIM Bank.