South South States to get Made in Nigeria Solar Panels

Locally manufactured panels are being deployed in several southern states as part of a pilot programme to develop alternative energy and rural electrification in Nigeria.

The panels are developed by National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) are to be deployed to Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom and Delta states.

According to the Director-General of NASENI, Prof. Olusegun Adewoye, “Right now Federal Executive Council has approved that we should have a pilot scheme of using our solar panels in the rural areas, the solar panel for now is going to take place in three states: Bayelsa, Delta and Akwa Ibom.”

He added that the project would be executed “within a space of four months we will have finished installing all the solar panels in those places.  It is a pilot scheme. We have 7.5 MW capacities and this is a small job to demonstrate.”

“On top of this, the Ministry of Science and Technology is already sending a proposal to the Federal Government to do what we call cluster development schemes and each cluster will use renewable energy to boost small scale industry and other economic development such as building for rural areas, processing of food, trees and other domestic or industrial processing,”

The Chairman, Senate committee on Science and Technology disclosed during a visit to NASENI’s factory, “We have seen the plant, we are really excited and impressed and we wish that other government establishments have the culture of excellence and hard work as this agency. It is a focused establishment that is addressing a very serious problem of the country, that is energy and what is being done, if well supported and well funded, can be of tremendous result for improving the quality of life not only in the urban areas but also in the rural areas.”