…Unveils 3.7GW local manufacturing plan
By Seun Ibiyemi
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Abba Aliyu, has identified distributed renewable energy as Nigeria’s quickest route to achieving sustainable economic growth and industrial competitiveness.
Aliyu made the declaration while delivering a keynote address titled “Scaling Mini-Grids and Solar Infrastructure for Industrial Production” at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) Renewable Energy Outlook Conference held in Lagos.
According to him, Nigeria’s ability to build reliable, affordable and scalable electricity systems will determine the future of its industrial sector, stressing that the country must adopt a diversified energy mix rather than relying on a single solution.
“Scaling mini-grids and solar infrastructure for industrial production is not about choosing between the grid and off-grid systems. It is about designing a smarter power system that uses every viable tool available,” he said.
President of LCCI, Engr. Leye Kupoluyi (2nd from left) presenting an appreciation plaque to the Managing Director of Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Dr Abba Aliyu (3rd from left) who delivered a keynote at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) Renewable Energy Outlook Conference in Lagos today.
The REA chief noted that Nigeria requires a coordinated blend of grid electricity, gas, hydropower, solar energy, storage systems, embedded generation, mini-grids, private capital and local manufacturing to meet growing energy demands.
Aliyu said the renewable energy landscape of the future would differ significantly from traditional power models, emphasizing the need for forward-looking regulations that encourage innovation while protecting consumers and maintaining market discipline.
He commended recent regulatory reforms introduced by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), including net billing frameworks and updated regulations that increased the capacity threshold for interconnected mini-grids from one megawatt to five megawatts.
According to him, the expanded threshold creates opportunities for factories, residential estates, universities, market clusters and data centres to integrate into a more flexible and reliable electricity network.
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Calling on the private sector to play a more active role, Aliyu urged investors, entrepreneurs and industrial consumers to move beyond passive consumption and become key drivers of energy solutions.
“A mini-grid that powers homes changes lives. But a mini-grid that powers homes, a rice mill, a cold room, a welding cluster, a clinic, a digital services hub, and a market changes an economy,” he said.
He also challenged commercial banks and financial institutions to develop innovative financing products that support renewable energy projects, including project preparation funds, local currency financing facilities and carbon revenue monetisation instruments.
The REA boss disclosed that the agency is currently implementing the largest interconnected mini-grid deployment programme in Nigeria’s history, with more than 1,000 mini-grids under development nationwide through the $750 million Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up (DARES) programme supported by the World Bank.
He further revealed that the agency has completed the strategic framework for the National Electrification Plan and submitted a comprehensive report to the Minister of Power after conducting geospatial mapping of households across the country to identify the least-cost pathway for achieving universal electricity access.
In a move aimed at reducing import dependence and boosting local industry, Aliyu announced plans to develop 3.7 gigawatts of domestic renewable energy manufacturing capacity under the Nigeria First policy framework.
The initiative, he said, will leverage REA’s deployment pipeline to stimulate local assembly, manufacturing and technical skills development, with production hubs planned across Lagos, Ogun, Bayelsa and Kano states.
Aliyu urged investors to seize the opportunities presented by the evolving renewable energy market to help secure Nigeria’s industrial future.
Also speaking at the conference, the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, described the transformation of Nigeria’s electricity sector as a generational undertaking that cannot be completed within a single administration.
“The problems plaguing the power sector are largely governance and commercial challenges; the technical aspect accounts for only 20 per cent of the issue,” Tegbe said.
He noted that the Electricity Act has fundamentally restructured the sector by empowering states to generate, transmit and regulate electricity, thereby democratizing energy governance across the country.
The minister stressed that while reforms are being pursued with urgency, meaningful transformation would require sustained commitment, legislative continuity and long-term implementation.
Meanwhile, President of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Leye Kupoluyi, said rising energy costs remain a major challenge for Nigerian businesses and continue to constrain growth across sectors.
Kupoluyi commended the Ministry of Power and the REA for expanding access to electricity through innovative renewable energy solutions, while calling for large-scale private sector investments to accelerate the country’s energy transition and eliminate persistent power shortages.
