Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt
Engineers have warned that Nigeria’s ageing electrical energy infrastructure, weak funding and rising power calls for from digital applied sciences threaten the nation’s digital economic system, industrial progress and competitiveness except pressing reforms are carried out.
The warning was issued on the twenty second International Conference and Exhibition on Power and Telecommunications (ICEPT 2026), organised by the Nigerian Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (NIEEE) in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
Delivering the keynote deal with on behalf of the Director-General of the Energy Commission of Nigeria, Dr Abdullahi Mustapha, the Acting Director for National Energy Efficiency, Dr Manaseh Shitta, mentioned Nigeria should urgently modernise its electrical energy infrastructure to deal with the calls for of an more and more digital economic system.
He warned that synthetic intelligence (AI), cloud computing and knowledge centres have been driving world electrical energy consumption, inserting extra stress on energy programs already struggling to satisfy current demand.
The growth, he mentioned, offered a significant problem for Nigeria because the nation pursued digital transformation, industrialisation and the transition to cleaner power sources.
Shitta recognized rising electrical energy demand from digitalisation, cybersecurity threats and insufficient funding in ageing energy infrastructure as three essential obstacles to integrating power programs with rising applied sciences.
He defined that trendy power infrastructure more and more trusted digital applied sciences to handle renewable power sources, electrical car charging stations, battery storage programs and decentralised electrical energy era.
Without applicable digital programs, he mentioned, managing these interconnected power networks effectively would develop into more and more tough.
However, he cautioned that better reliance on digital applied sciences additionally uncovered essential power infrastructure to cyberattacks, making cybersecurity an integral part of Nigeria’s energy sector modernisation.
He referred to as for stronger collaboration amongst engineers, power firms, traders and policymakers to draw funding, develop progressive applied sciences and set up regulatory frameworks that will assist digital innovation whereas defending essential infrastructure.
“The future of energy is not just green. It is smart, connected and digital,” he mentioned.
Also talking, the Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Senator John Enoh, represented by the Zonal Coordinator of the ministry’s Industrial Inspectorate Department, Mr Itoro Johnson, mentioned dependable electrical energy and digital expertise have been indispensable to Nigeria’s industrialisation drive.
He mentioned the Nigeria Industrial Policy 2025 supplied a framework for aligning power, infrastructure, commerce and expertise to strengthen home manufacturing and enhance the competitiveness of Nigerian companies.
Enoh disclosed that the coverage had attracted greater than $380 million in strategic financing commitments for manufacturing and value-chain growth.
He added that the Federal Government was prioritising devoted power options for industrial clusters to handle electrical energy challenges confronting producers.
According to him, plans included energy and fuel infrastructure for industrial parks similar to Idu, alongside expanded financing alternatives for companies by means of partnerships with the Bank of Industry.
The minister urged engineers to develop indigenous applied sciences and speed up the adoption of digital options throughout industrial sectors, stressing that authorities efforts to attain financial progress required efficient collaboration with {industry} professionals.
Earlier, NIEEE President, Felix Adegboye, mentioned the convention was designed to generate sensible options to Nigeria’s electrical energy and technological challenges.
The convention, themed “Energy Transition in a Digital Era: The Nexus, Challenges and Opportunities,” is holding from October 12 to 16, bringing collectively stakeholders from authorities, academia, {industry} and the funding group.
Adegboye mentioned discussions would cowl clear power, telecommunications, automation, synthetic intelligence and different rising applied sciences, with emphasis on addressing infrastructure gaps and figuring out funding alternatives.
He additionally introduced the inaugural NIEEE Fellows’ Assembly, which might study synthetic intelligence’s implications for engineering observe, skilled accountability, cybersecurity and the coaching of future engineers.
Adegboye urged members to translate deliberations into deployable applied sciences, stronger industry-academia partnerships and sustainable engineering options.
He careworn that collaboration amongst professionals, authorities and traders can be important to constructing a resilient power system able to supporting Nigeria’s digital ambitions and long-term industrial growth.
