Nigeria Needs $23bn to Electrify Underserved Communities - REA

Nigeria will require about 23 billion dollars to provide electricity to underserved and unserved communities nationwide, the Managing Director of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Abba Abubakar Aliyu, has said.

Aliyu disclosed this in Abuja during the switch-on ceremony for Phase 1 of the Greening of the UN House solar project, where officials from the United Nations and the Federal Government highlighted renewable energy as a pathway to expanding electricity access and supporting Nigeria’s energy transition.

He said a nationwide mapping exercise carried out by the agency identified about 143,000 communities with varying levels of electricity access.

“We succeeded in mapping the entire country and came up with about 143,000 communities, most of them fully electrified, a number underserved and some completely without access,” Aliyu said.

He explained that the exercise covered communities of different sizes across Nigeria, from densely populated urban areas to remote rural settlements.

“From communities that have over 2.5 million households, which is the biggest community in Nigeria in Lagos State, to communities that have just two households, we analysed the most efficient means of electrifying them,” he said.

Aliyu added that the agency also assessed the most cost-effective technologies to electrify each community, including grid extension, mini-grids and solar solutions.

“We added another layer to determine the least cost of electrifying those communities and the best use of providing electricity to them. That analysis showed that about 23 billion dollars is required to strengthen communities that are underserved and to provide electricity to those without access using the least-cost approach,” he said.

He said the figure as an indication of the scale of work required for Nigeria to achieve universal electricity access. Aliyu noted that initiatives such as the solarisation of the UN House demonstrate that renewable energy is both achievable and economically viable.

“When we come to an event like this, it shows that the transition is not only practicable but it is doable. It demonstrates to public institutions and the general community that it is possible to harvest solar energy and provide electrification in the most economically efficient way,” he said.

He added that the agency would continue working with the United Nations to expand solar energy solutions, particularly in rural communities where electricity access remains limited.

The UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Mohammed Fall, earlier said the solarisation of the UN House was a major step toward sustainability and energy resilience.

“Today, in this compound, we are doing something profoundly simple and profoundly important. In a few moments, with the flip of a switch, this building will begin running on sunlight,” Fall said. He said that the project represents more than a technological upgrade.

Fall said reliable electricity is central to Nigeria’s economic development and social progress, noting that businesses, hospitals, schools and households depend on stable power supply.

He added that Phase 1 of the project includes a 400-kilowatt peak solar photovoltaic microgrid designed for expansion to 700 kilowatts, alongside 650 kilowatt-hours of lithium-ion battery storage to provide electricity during night-time hours.

According to him, the system also includes artificial intelligence-driven energy management and Internet of Things monitoring technology that enables engineers to track performance remotely.

In addition, the project will cut grid electricity consumption by nearly one million kilowatt-hours annually and reduce about 300 tonnes of carbon emissions. Fall said the next phase would expand the solar capacity toward 700 kilowatts with the long-term goal of achieving near-complete clean energy autonomy for the UN compound.

Also speaking, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Power, Mahmuda Mamman, who represented the Minister of Power, said the project aligns with Nigeria’s national energy and climate policies.