The Federal Government has signed an agreement with the European Union and the German Government to provide support worth £17.9m to fund Nigeria’s off-grid electricity project.
The project launched under the third phase of the Nigerian Energy Support Programme is to foster investments in renewable energy, energy efficiency and rural electrification.
According to the EU, the programme will enable 154,000 people to access electricity and connect 30,000 others to clean cooking gas, while eight megawatts of electricity will be generated in the third phase.
The NESP was commissioned in 2013 as a technical assistance programme co-funded by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Power.
Speaking at the launch and steering committee meeting of NESP III, the Head of Section Green and Digital Economy at the European Union Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Inga Stefanowicz, said achieving a cleaner future is the business of all stakeholders.
She said the EU has not only continued to support the Nigerian government to achieve its energy security plans but to also achieve a sustainable energy future through the increase of renewables in its electricity mix.
According to her, the EU is pleased to have commissioned additional funding for the third phase of the programme to continue supporting the development of various frameworks and innovative models, bringing a new landscape to the concept of electricity franchising, attracting renewable energy investments and ensuring reliable power supply to its beneficiaries.
