Exploring Renewable Energy in Nigeria
Eniola Amu
Eniola is a Financial Analyst at Hygge Energy. She is Chartered Accountant, and a graduate of York University where she completed a Masters in Management. She has a passion for finding solutions to financial management issues faced by businesses. She also has extensive knowledge in the areas of strategy, consulting, data analysis and international financial reporting standards. Eniola is excited about partnering with her colleagues to drive Hygge’s innovative solution towards becoming a leading clean technology solution globally.
Imagine a world without power for heating/cooling, operating appliances, and electronics. Also, imagine one where doctors are unable to complete surgeries due to power cuts. This is the reality of about 1.3 billion people residing in developing countries, of which 85% live in rural areas of Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. Many of these countries have a wealth of resources. Still, they are plagued with poverty and poor governance, which hinders the proper utilization of these resources.
This article will be using Nigeria, located in Sub-Saharan Africa, as a case for this discussion. Even though electricity is highly essential to every society's proper functioning, Nigeria, like many other developing countries, is lacking this vital resource.
Nigeria, the 7th largest country globally, cannot provide electricity to 38% of its population (based on 2019 statistics). The remaining 62% have infrequent access to electricity. In Nigeria, households, businesses, and communities are forced to use petrol and diesel generators to power their own homes, offices, and facilities due to inconsistent power supply from the grid. The harmful gas emissions emanating from the generators have caused a lot of air and noise pollution. In cities like Lagos, there is an ever-present noise of generators. Also, many businesses are barely surviving or forced to shut down due to the high cost of generating their power supply.
In a bid to improve the situation, Nigeria’s power sector was partially privatized. However, the state of power supply has not improved but worsened since then.
“Nigeria, the 7th largest country globally, cannot provide electricity to 38% of its population (based on 2019 statistics). The remaining 62% have infrequent access to electricity.”
Nigeria has a tropical climate that is hot and wet most of the year. Therefore, it has an abundance of sunlight, water and wind, which are the elements required for renewable energy. Yet, almost half of the country lives without electricity. Currently, fossil fuels account for 86% of Nigeria's energy generation, which is very harmful to the environment and expensive. Renewable energy is only used to generate a small amount of electricity.
The underlying problem here is that Nigeria is too dependent on fossil fuels. It needs to diversify its energy sources, to improve the above statistics by increasing the supply of power while creating jobs for the unemployed and reducing the environmental degradation caused by gas emissions.
“There is an untapped energy market in Nigeria that can elevate the entire nation if approached strategically. Hygge can transform the outlook of such a country…”
Hygge energy is uniquely positioned to help developing countries like Nigeria. Such countries need to explore renewable energy as an alternative means of generating power in a way that is more resourceful, environmentally friendly, and sustainable with the right partnerships. There is an untapped energy market in Nigeria which has the potential to elevate the entire nation if approached strategically. Hygge can transform the outlook of such a country by providing reliable energy through its energy trading platform while ensuring efficient use through redistribution to households, businesses and communities that need solar power. With Hygge the future is limitless, developing countries across the world can go as far as one day driving technological advancement.
