The African Development Bank (AfDB) is planning to support Nigeria’s power sector with $1 billion to boost electricity.

Dr. Kevin Kariuki, Vice President, Power, Energy, Climate Change and Green Growth Complex, AfDB, said this on Thursday, May 16, at the 8th Africa Energy MarketPlace (AEMP) Forum in Abuja.

The forum was organised by AfDB, Ministry of Power and the United Kingdom Nigeria Infrastructure Advisory Facility (UKNIAF).

The theme of the forum titled “Towards Nigeria’s Sustainable Energy Future: Policy, Regulation, and Investment – A Policy Dialogue for the National Integrated Electricity Policy and Strategic Implementation Plan (NIEP-SIP)”.

Kariuki said: “We will be shortly seeking board approval for $1 billion policy-based operation (PBO) with a significant energy component.

“This is aimed at supporting the ongoing power sector reforms triggered by the new Electricity Act.

“The timing of the AEMP and the proposed policy-based lending focused on the energy sector is, therefore, not coincidental.

“We will finance the policy recommendations to actualise the expected outcomes from the National Integrated Electricity Policy and Strategic Implementation Plan.”

He said that good policies attracted sustainable investments, adding that enabling environment would maximise the value of ongoing investments, including the $256.2 million Nigeria Transmission Expansion Project.

According to him, the project entailed the construction of 500 kilometres (KM) of transmission lines and four substations with a capacity of over 1,000 Mega Volt Ampree (MVA).

“And the $200 million Nigeria Electrification Project, which will build 150 mini-grids.

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“Moreover, we are financing a study for the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) to explore deployment of Battery Energy Storage Systems to enhance grid stability and facilitate greater uptake of renewable energy generation.

“Nigeria is part of our flagship $20 billion Desert to Power Initiative, which aims to generate 10,000 Megawatts (MW) of solar power across 11 countries in the Sahel region to provide power to 250 million Africans.”

According to AfDB vice president, this portends great promise for increasing the proportion of renewable energy in Nigeria’s energy mix.

He said that through the multi-prong approach of supporting policy development, financing critical power sector infrastructure, and providing technical assistance and capacity building would be achieved.

“We strongly believe that our partnership with the Federal Government will ensure a viable and sustainable power sector that will yield the desired result,” he said.

The Star