The Federal Government, under its Energising Education Programme (EEP), will today, unveil the first solar hybrid power plant at the Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike Ikwo (FUNAI), Ebonyi State.
The project, which will be commissioned by the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, will see 7,700 students and 1,819 faculty staff at FUNAI having access to clean reliable energy from the university’s 2.8MW solar hybrid power plant.
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Mrs. Damilola Ogunbiyi, said the EEP is a Federal Government’s intervention.
She said the programme is focused on developing off-grid, dedicated and independent power plants, as well as rehabilitating existing distribution infrastructure to supply clean and reliable power to 37 federal universities and seven affiliated university teaching hospitals.
Apart from the 2.8MW solar hybrid power plant, other projects to be commissioned at the groundbreaking event would include the launch of 7.5 kilometres of solar powered street lights for illumination and safety, as well as a world-class renewables training centre.
“This programme will undoubtedly improve the quality of education, research and health care services at our federal universities and teaching hospitals. I’m proud of the role that women have played in the successful implementation of this project from the head of project being a woman, to the female STEM students that all worked on the project.
“No doubt, the EEP represents a significant milestone in green financing in Africa,” Ogunbiyi said.
The EEP project is an outcome of a collaboration between the Rural Electrification Agency, Ministry of Power, Works and Housing, the Federal Ministry of Environment, the National Universities Commission, and executed by Sterling & Wilson, a solutions and services provider that provides business solutions for solar, wind energy, transmission and distribution, hybrid energy storage and turnkey data centres to organisations across the world.