The Rural Electrification Agency (REA) has received approval to establish a renewable asset management company to sustain its electrification interventions and ensure long-term infrastructure viability.
The Managing Director of REA, Mr. Abba Aliyu, made this announcement on Monday at the signing of a collaborative agreement between the agency and eight Renewable Energy Service Companies (RESCOs) in Abuja, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.
Aliyu disclosed that the new asset management company is expected to oversee and maintain mega assets, including renewable energy infrastructure worth nearly $500 million, which has been deployed to universities across Nigeria.
“This company will warehouse these assets and REA will leverage on the assets to raise close to N1 trillion, so that we will continue to intervene even if there is no availability of loans and grants. The country will be standing on its own to continue to drive electricity access and infrastructure in many years to come,” Aliyu stated.
He emphasized that the initiative will enable Nigeria to independently drive electricity access and infrastructure development for years to come. According to him, REA is committed to ensuring that the company becomes operational before the end of the year.
N100 Billion Allocation for National Public Sector Solarisation Project
Aliyu also revealed that President Bola Tinubu has approved N100 billion for REA to implement the National Public Sector Solarisation Project, a strategic initiative aimed at reducing the cost of governance by transitioning public institutions to solar energy.
“The analysis that we have seen of budget implementation shows that a number of public institutions spend a lot of money to buy diesel or to pay for electricity. To reduce the cost of governance, REA secured the project, which will start in the next few weeks,” he said.
Additional $200 Million Financing from Japan
Further boosting Nigeria’s renewable energy efforts, Aliyu confirmed that discussions with the Japanese International Development Corporation to secure an additional $200 million in co-financing have reached an advanced stage.
The fund will be merged with the existing $750 million Distributed Access through Renewable Energy (DARE) funding, bringing the total available financing to $950 million.
“Three weeks ago, we were in Japan with the Minister of Power, Mr. Adebayo Adelabu. The discussions are almost concluded, and we expect the funds to be available soon,” Aliyu noted.
600MW Solar Energy Rollout by 2026
Speaking on behalf of RESCOs, Mr. Ademola Ogunbanjo, President of Oando Clean Energy, announced that the company will roll out 600 megawatts (MW) of solar energy by 2026.
“What we are doing today by signing this agreement with RESCOs is to ensure Nigerians have access to electricity,” Ogunbanjo said.
Strategic Partnerships with RESCOs for Expanded Electricity Access
During the event, REA formalized agreements with eight RESCOs to accelerate Nigeria’s renewable energy expansion. The companies include:
- Ashipa Electric Limited
- De-Janees Concept Ltd
- Fax Power Ltd
- M&BH Power Ltd
- Okra Solar PTY Ltd
- Oando Clean Energy
- Sosai Renewable Energy Ltd
- Weight Nigeria Ltd
Aliyu reiterated that these partnerships align with REA’s goal of increasing access to clean and sustainable electricity for Nigerian homes and businesses.
