Engr. Abubakar Aliyu, Nigeria’s Minister of Power, lamented on Thursday that the country’s electricity sector is underutilized, with over 13,000 megawatts underutilized due to a lack of investment.
Mr. K. Kariuki, the African Development Bank’s Vice President for Power, Energy, Climate, and Green Growth Complex, paid the Minister a courtesy call at the Ministry’s headquarters on Thursday.
Engr. Aliyu, on the other hand, assured consumers of improved electricity quality, emphasizing that “the Power sector has a lot of opportunities for investors ranging from distribution to transmission, and its challenge has left the generation of over 13,000 megawatts underutilized.”
While praising the Africa Development Bank for its intervention in certain areas of the power sector, Odutayo Oluseyi, Assistant Director, Press in the Ministry of Power, stated that more intervention is needed, stating that 80 percent of megawatts come from gas, while efforts are underway to move quickly to renewable energy through the engagement of independent power producers.
The Minister directed that the Federal Ministry of Power and the Africa Development Bank continue to work together on areas of intervention and collaboration.
Mr. K. Kariuki, Vice President of the African Development Bank’s Power, Energy, Climate, and Green Growth Complex, said earlier that the AFDB appreciates the power sector reform in Nigeria and would be pleased if it succeeds because Nigeria has Africa’s largest economy and the success of the reform will serve as a model for other countries.
