NSIA & REA PARTNER ON N10bn FUND FOR SOLAR POWER NAIJA PROGRAMME
The Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) in collaboration with the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) is investing in the off grid renewable energy under the Solar Power Naija Programme which was launched in Dec 2020 with the aim of using Solar Home Systems (SHS) technology to increase energy access to 5 million households in the rural communities across Nigeria.
The NSIA-REA agreement would establish a N10 billion revolving fund for approved developers to manufacture and distribute Solar Home Systems. The fund will only be accessible through the Nigerian Electrification Program (NEP) to qualified developers under the existing REA and World Bank scheme that guides technical qualification and provides grants for developers to invest and participate in off grid electrification projects.
This investment by NSIA is targeted at catalyzing 200,000 off grid connections with a goal of distributing over 500,000 systems as the fund revolves and is expanded through to 2023. The Solar Power Naija programme is estimated to also create up to 250,000 jobs across manufacturing, assembly, installation and retail over the period. Additionally, this partnership will help Nigeria meet its Economic Sustainability Plan (ESP) target of bridging the electrification gap and increasing access to electricity especially in rural area.