* Tegbe, Okoye, Chukwudozie, define methods to sort out industrial vitality disaster
The Minister of Power, Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe, has unveiled the Federal Government’s technique to enhance electrical energy provide to Nigeria’s industrial sector, together with plans for devoted transmission infrastructure to attach obtainable energy technology to main manufacturing hubs.
Tegbe, who spoke on the Manufacturers Energy Security and Energy Efficiency Summit in Lagos, outlined a four-pronged authorities strategy to addressing the nation’s electrical energy challenges, figuring out improved sector liquidity and sustainability, optimisation of current technology and transmission belongings, improvement of vitality zones and growth of important infrastructure as key priorities.
He additionally disclosed plans to strengthen electrical energy provide to industrial clusters by means of devoted transmission hyperlinks, together with a proposed connection between Alaoji and the Agbara industrial space.
According to him, bettering the connection between obtainable technology and industrial demand is important to making sure that producers have entry to extra dependable electrical energy and lowering the price of manufacturing.
The minister’s remarks got here because the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) launched the Industrial Energy Cost Reduction and Clean Energy Adoption Programme (IECRECAP), an initiative designed to assist producers safe extra dependable, inexpensive and sustainable vitality whereas lowering their dependence on costly different energy sources.
The programme was unveiled on November 3 on the summit and is being carried out by means of the Manufacturers Power Development Company Limited (MPDCL), in collaboration with the Nigerian Energy Support Programme, carried out by GIZ, the Federal Ministry of Power and different companions.
Speaking on the occasion, MAN President, Dr. Ifeanyi Okoye, recognized excessive vitality prices, unreliable grid electrical energy and producers’ growing dependence on self-generation as main obstacles to industrial productiveness and competitiveness.
Okoye confused the necessity for sustainable financing fashions tailor-made to the peculiar calls for of commercial vitality tasks, advocating sensible interventions equivalent to rooftop photo voltaic methods, battery storage, captive fuel technology and good vitality administration.
He famous that bettering entry to dependable and inexpensive vitality was important to strengthening native manufacturing capability and positioning Nigerian industries for regional and international competitiveness.
In a presentation titled, ‘Manufacturers’ Pain Points – Energy Cost: Imperative for Regional Manufacturing Leadership in Accessing Structured Finance,’ Chairman of Keystone Bank Limited and Regional Chairman of MAN for Anambra, Enugu and Ebonyi States, Lady Ada Chukwudozie, highlighted the large monetary burden producers bear in securing different electrical energy.
Chukwudozie disclosed that Nigerian producers spent roughly N1.11 trillion on different energy technology in 2024, with the determine rising to about N1.35 trillion in 2025.
She noticed that the large expenditure was putting appreciable strain on companies, diverting funds that will in any other case have been invested in uncooked supplies, equipment, employees salaries, enterprise growth and different productive actions.
The Keystone Bank Chairman advocated structured, investor-backed financing preparations that will allow producers to undertake clear vitality options with out committing substantial upfront capital.
Using the 1.5-megawatt rooftop photo voltaic mission at Nkpor, Anambra State, as a sensible demonstration of what could possibly be achieved, Chukwudozie defined that investor-financed vitality infrastructure may considerably scale back producers’ working prices whereas preserving their working capital.
She projected that the mission would ship vitality financial savings of greater than 50 per cent, with good metering, distant monitoring and vitality dashboards offering real-time efficiency monitoring and improved vitality administration.
The IECRECAP initiative combines rooftop photo voltaic installations and battery storage, the place needed, with vitality effectivity interventions designed to scale back producers’ dependence on costly typical and self-generated electrical energy.
Beyond lowering vitality prices, the programme will help collaborating producers in aggregating and monetising emissions reductions by means of carbon credit. It may also help companies in measuring and reporting their carbon footprints as worldwide markets more and more impose stricter environmental and sustainability necessities on imported merchandise.
The summit, themed ‘Innovative Energy for Cost-Effective Smart Manufacturing with Structured Financing,’ introduced collectively producers, authorities officers, regulators, monetary establishments, know-how suppliers and improvement companions to discover progressive financing preparations and sustainable vitality options for Nigeria’s industrial sector.
With producers more and more confronted by rising manufacturing prices and vitality insecurity, the initiative is predicted to offer a viable pathway in direction of decrease working bills, improved productiveness, better vitality independence and enhanced competitiveness of domestically manufactured merchandise.
