The federal government has said that with the collaboration of the private sector in renewable energy sources across the country, the bills paid by Nigerians who deploy solar as an alternative would be significantly reduced.
The Minister of State for Power, Mr. Goddy Jedy-Agba, who spoke when he inspected the 609 kilowatts peak (kWp) Jabi Lake Mall hybrid solar power plant in Abuja, built by Actis, a United Kingdom firm, advised Nigerians to embrace the off-grid option.
Jedy-Agba further called on investors to build more partnership with the Distribution Companies (Discos) who have the franchise so they can work together on similar projects to the benefit of all parties.
“Actis is proving that one can cut down energy bills through this project and this should be replicated in other places. The solar hybrid project at Jabi Lake Mall is another example of Nigeria’s pioneering role in clean energy transition,” he stated.
The minister who recently inaugurated several such projects across the states, noted that he was impressed with the work done on the facility and encouraged Nigerians to borrow a leaf from the Mall.
Speaking at the event, the Managing Director of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Mr. Ahmad Salihijo Ahmad, stated that as a key stakeholder in the renewable energy space, the REA supports such solar solutions.
He described solar energy as clean, safe and reliable, noting that a lot was being done to make such sources of energy available to power the Nigerian economy.
Ahmad said the federal government through the REA was implementing the Energising Economies Initiative (EEI) to deploy clean renewable energy to thousands of businesses across markets, shopping centres and industrial facilities.
According to the REA helmsman, closing the energy gap with renewable energy will automatically cut down on the cost of running businesses in Nigeria, which will ultimately improves the country’s business survival index.
“This project as well as others being sustained across the country by innovative private developers is in sync with the federal government’s renewable energy objective.
“Energising clusters with high economic activities and potential enables us to achieve positive environmental and economic impact using renewable energy. The critical role reliable energy plays in the life of a business cannot be over-emphasised.
“By closing the energy gap in the business landscape in Nigeria through the optimisation of renewable energy solutions, we automatically cut down on the cost of running a business in Nigeria, which ultimately improves our business survival index,” he stated.
Actis Investment Principal, Mr Tolu Sokenu, in his comments, explained that Actis/Jabi Lake Holdings Limited, was marking the one year anniversary of the plant.
He stated that the minister’s visit was, “To showcase large-scale sustainable solar energy projects in Nigeria and to highlight private sector investments (Actis) in sustainable buildings and power supply in Nigeria.”
He added that the 25,000 square metres mall is the first of its kind in Abuja offering office and shopping space to 106 brands that include Shoprite, Game, and Silverbird as well as parking capacity for 733 vehicles.
The 1,848 solar photovoltaic (PV) panels generate 850 megawatts hour (MWh) of electricity annually and has a 15-year Solar Power Purchase Agreement (SPPA) between Jabi Mall Development Company Ltd and CrossBoundary Energy, the developer.
According to him, the project will reduce carbon emissions by 13,000 tonnes, cutting the energy bill by 25 to 30 per cent, which he said has already been achieved.
Source: Thisday
