Nigeria’s electricity challenge could deepen as population growth, artificial intelligence, digitalisation and the increasing electrification of transportation, agriculture and other sectors drive an unprecedented rise in demand, the Rural Electrification Agency has warned.
The Managing Director of the REA, Abba Aliyu, gave the warning on Friday in Abuja during the signing of a collaboration agreement between the agency and Alpha Morgan Bank, which committed up to N50bn in financing for renewable energy developers.
Aliyu said the agreement was part of efforts to close the huge financing gap confronting Nigeria’s electricity sector, particularly in rural and underserved communities where millions of households and businesses remain without reliable access to power.
Under the arrangement, eligible developers participating in REA programmes, including the Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up project, will be able to access revolving loans of up to N10bn each, subject to the bank’s credit assessment and approval.
Alpha Morgan Bank will provide up to 70 per cent counterpart funding for eligible projects, with proposed loan tenures ranging from 12 to 24 months.
